Crimson Ribbons
by notesonlife
Summary: It pulled them together when their worlds pulled them apart. [Hana x Itachi] [Sequel to The Distant Cry of the Wolf]
1. Once Upon A Time

**Crimson Ribbons**

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**A/N:** Welcome to all new readers and welcome back to all you old ones (not saying you're old... or anything...)! Well... I hope you will enjoy this story! I'm going to put in lyrics... or quotes in each part... if I find any. If anyone knows any good songs or quotes that relate to this story please, please, please tell me!  
**Disclaimer:** Don't own... don't sue.  
**Note:** The heroine in my story is Inuzuka Hana. She is a real character in Naruto, and she is Inuzuka Kiba's older sister. There is an OC, Okamisora Kyoshi, who is currently dead.

* * *

_  
Summer has come and passed  
The innocent can never last  
Wake me when September ends  
__Here comes the rain again  
Falling from the stars  
Drenched in my pain again  
Becoming who we are  
As my memory rests  
But never forgets what I lost  
-Wake Me Up When September Ends-_

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**  
Chapter 1: Once Upon A Time...**

_Once upon a time there was a girl living in the world of the shinobi. She was ordinary but somehow extraordinary, with a huge heart but a heavy attitude. She knew a boy, a prodigy of one of the strongest families in her large peaceful country. He was handsome far beyond his years, the best of the best. And secretly, the two fell in love. Of course, like any budding relationship between two people that should never, ever, be together, things changed towards violence. The boy tortured her mind in the way it could never be the same again before fleeing their country... and if that wasn't enough, he also killed his family along with incinerating the girl's friend in flames. Once upon a time, five years after that night, is where this story starts..._

* * *

Her eyes stayed fixed on the table, unable to summon any courage. Taking a breath, she closed her eyes and lifted her head. She finally slowly opened her eyes and stared at her reflection. 

_It takes courage to look into a mirror... _she thought.

And as always, the face she saw was a stranger. No, she knew it was herself; she knew it was the exact same person she saw every morning for the past five years.

But, this person... was always different.

Dark eyes bore into her own, scaring her at how intense they were. Her skin, tan and almost golden, was somehow bone-white at the same time. Prominent cheekbones, full lips, long eyelashes, chocolate brown tresses... this wasn't her. This person, this woman was so different than who she _really_ was. This reflection was too much prettier, too much stronger, too much better than what she really was inside. Ugly, fragile, inferior. How could this woman be her? Shivering, she stared into those dark cavernous eyes, seeing nothing.

She was cold. It was always cold.

She tore her eyes from the mirror, walking almost in a trance towards the door. Three ash gray dogs solemnly followed her, whimpering ever so slightly. She opened the door, closing it behind her as the three dogs bounded out.

* * *

She looked up at the sky, watching gloomy gray clouds travel idly across the sky. She sighed. 

_The sky is mourning today, _she thought.

Walking through the crowds of people, she picked out the people dressed in all black. So few. It had been five long years, and that night was fading to the back of people's minds. Those that were still mourning met her eyes, watching her, recalling her past.

She stopped at a small shop, reading the sign. Opening the door, she was greeted by the tingle of bells addressing her presence. Her eyes met bright pastels of red, orange, violet, white, blue, yellow, pink, and green. Her nose filled with the strong floral fragrance, dulling her usually strong and impeccable senses. The dogs brushed against her leg, urging her to hurry.

She touched a petal on a brilliant red rose, and smiled softly at the softness between her callused fingers.

"Hello! Welcome to Yamanaka Flower Shop! How may I help you?" a male voice sounded from behind her.

She spun around, her dark eyes meeting kind blue ones.

"I'd like to buy some lilies."

* * *

Inuzuka Hana smiled painfully. 

"Hello again."

She played with the hem of her olive green flak jacket, fidgeting.

"I got you some flowers..." she blurted out, looking away.

Awkward silence made the air heavy. Hana hated it. Why won't he just say something?

"I... want to thank you again... thank you for trying to save me," she dropped her head, a tear trailing slowly down her cheek. "You... didn't have to do it... you could have just left."

Silence. The three dogs, together named the Haimaru Sankyodai, dipped their heads.

"I'm sorry..."

But the name on the memorial stone did not speak. It could not. One of the three dogs, Haruko, padded forward to touch his grayish-black nuzzle against the engraving of the name. The female and oldest of the group, Aneko, nipped his brother's tail for touching such an honorable thing. The youngest, Jiro, brushed against Hana's knee, wanting Hana not to be so in grief. Hana, absentmindedly placed a hand on the dog's back.

Hana reread the name.

_Okamisora Kyoshi._

"I couldn't save your body..."

Hana lifted her head back up to the sky, and the breeze blew against her body. She shivered involuntarily again.

"I know... I know you're watching over me. I know you don't want me to feel guilty. But it hurts Kyoshi..." Hana murmured. She could only cry once a year, on this certain day when a certain friend died in the hands of another.

* * *

Hana closed her eyes, her world spinning around her. She needed to leave. But she had to stay... Kyoshi wanted her to. 

"It's been five years..." she whispered. "Why does it still hurt?"

Hana never loved Kyoshi. Okamisora Kyoshi was so normal, so weird, Hana couldn't love him then. But Kyoshi was also so powerful, so determined to save her with his very life, that Hana did love him.

She knew he was a friend, a friend who was more than a friend. He would die to save her, or at least try to, and he did that. A shinobi's life consisted of fighting for what he believed in, for what he loved. And a shinobi's life would end when he would die to protect what he believed in, to protect what he loved.

But why do the good always die first?

She stared at the name, and then the name of his wolf carved right next to his. She quietly traced his name with her finger, then his wolf's name. Her eyes slowly traveled up to other names. Hana knew none of them.

She shut her eyes, her hands holding onto the memorial stone for support. Another dizzy spell hit her.

"Hana-san."

Hana opened her eyes, her mind still spinning. When did the world get so wet? When did it start raining?

Firm hands gripped onto her arms spinning her around.

"Hana-san."

Hana saw a blurry figure, clad in black and olive green, with a dash of silver.

"What do _you_ want?" she growled irritably, her senses blurred.

"You've been here for two hours. I think it's time for you to leave."

Did the hours already pass before her? It felt like she just got there.

"I'm... not ready..." she protested weakly.

The Jonin sighed and said firmly, "Hana-san. You are leaving now."

Hana frowned, and turned around back toward the memorial stone.

"Oh yeah... Happy Birthday Kyoshi. Rest..." Hana hesitated as more tears dropped from her eyes, landing silently on the stone, along with the rain droplets pounding against her and the memorial. She shivered and continued in a softer voice.

"Rest... rest in peace."

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**  
A/N: **How'd you like it? I know, I know, no action... but it's just the first chapter and more will come! I hope you liked it! Please review if you can and let's see... conversation with Chibi Itachi! 

Chibi Itachi: I wanna cookie.  
Author: You can have a cookie! -hugs Chibi Itachi while he nibbles on a raisin cookie-  
Chibi Itachi: -spits raisins- I hate raisins! -sends Author to Mangekyou hell-  
Author: YAHHHH! SPIDERS!  
Chibi Itachi: mwa ha ha ha ha ha... -shifty eyes- Look I'm a dinosaur! Rawr! -hops-  
((Author will now stop simulating conversations with chibi versions of sadist assassins that are not real, but are real in her obsessive mind.))


	2. Family

**A/N: **Hmm... got nothin' to say. Thanks to all readers... I guess. Enjoy!  
**Disclaimer: **Don't own anything but my i-m-a-g-i-n-a-t-i-o-n!

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_"Just as a house needs a foundation in order to stand firm, so does a person." _

_Jacquie McTaggart_

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**Chapter 2: Family**

Inuzuka Tsume stared outside the window, her dark eyes worried. Droplets of rain fell before her eyes and she could smell anxiety from her son. Thirteen-year-old Kiba gazed into space, his face revealing nothing.

Tsume sighed, her hand buried in the Kuromaru's thick fur. He growled, angry that Hana and the Haimaru Sankyodai hadn't returned yet. But the four continued to wait in bitter silence. The only thing to do on this day was to wait.

Tsume could smell her before she saw two dark figures walking towards the main house of the Inuzuka compound.

"She's here..."

Kiba stood up, throwing open the door before the Jonin could even knock. Three gray dogs brushed past him, shaking the water droplets out of their fur as Kuromaru padded over to nip all three of them on the ear for being late.

Hatake Kakashi and Inuzuka Hana stood drenched in rain on the doorstep.

Kiba glared at Hana, his mouth shut, refraining from yelling at the fragile girl.

"Hello..." Kakashi said smoothly.

"Arigatou," Tsume said forcefully. "Please come in..."

Kakashi shook his head, "I can't... I have to go. Sorry."

Kakashi then turned around and walked away in the rain. Hana watched absentmindedly, and Tsume could smell the grief in her daughter, the sadness filling the girl.

For the last five years, Kakashi had brought Hana back home. If he didn't, Hana wouldn't have returned.

* * *

When the Copy Ninja had left the main gates of the Inuzuka estate, the Chunnin walked back in. Flinging off her flak jacket she collapsed onto the couch, absentmindedly petting one of her three dogs, Jiro. Kiba trembled with held in anger. 

Now at the tender age of eighteen, Hana was considered an adult. Now as an adult, she was suited for marriage. Being the prettiest girl in the clan in five generations, Tsume was aware of the adoration she received by the male race. Tsume knew it was her duty, as mother and clan leader, to have her daughter married soon.

Tsume had to do it, although her mother never forced it onto her. Long ago, Hana was expected to be the next head of the Inuzuka clan.

But after that night, the anniversary of tonight, Hana was never the same.

She had suddenly become quieter, less aggressive, and more withdrawn... three characteristics not fit for being the leader of the most boisterous clan in Konoha. So Kiba was next in line to be clan leader, already earning the head elders' approval, and Hana had to be married.

* * *

Kiba crossed over to sit next to his sister. Tsume knew Hana was Kiba's first love, Hana was the girl Kiba ran to whenever he was hurt, angry, or happy. He refused to share Hana's attention with any other male, even beating up his best friend because he accused Shino of looking at his sister more than "friendly-wise". He reached for Hana's hand, trying to comfort her. 

He had long ago realized he too had to give his sister up; he had to help her look for a suitor, a husband.

"Hana..."

"Mm?" Hana mumbled absentmindedly.

"I'll let you see Shino."

Hana looked at her brother warily.

"What are you talking about?"

Kiba sighed and repeated forcefully, "I'll let you see Shino."

Tsume couldn't help but grin.

"Kiba, just because Shino likes Hana, doesn't mean she feels the same way," Tsume explained.

"Oh."

Hana smiled warmly, but her smile contrasted from Tsume. She lost the infamous hearty Inuzuka grin, but her smile was somehow just as affectionate. She wrapped an arm around her little brother, hugging him tightly.

"I'm not going to be dating anyone."

Kiba stared at her.

"You have to."

Hana shook her head, "Nope."

Tsume didn't know if she should interrupt.

"You have to date, then get married," Kiba put in.

"Kiba... I'm not going to marry anyone," Hana said stubbornly.

Tsume stood up, heading to the kitchen. A master strategist, Tsume needed to find a way to broach the subject of marrying now that it's confirmed she refused to marry.

"But you have to keep up the Inuzuka clan."

Hana shrugged, "You can do that."

"But..."

"I know you've got your eyes on that Hyuuga girl."

Kiba flushed red. Hana smiled, standing up.

* * *

"But... but... you have to at least _like_ someone!" the thirteen-year-old shinobi protested. 

Hana stopped. She leaned a strong hand on the door frame of her room as she slightly turned her head and murmured, "I did."

And with that said, Hana walked into her room, lightly shutting the door behind her.

Kiba watched the closed door, his eyes boring holes in the wood (not literally, figuratively speaking). He then sighed. Tsume instantly reached the door of Hana's room before Kiba could, and walked in, shutting the door in the boy's face.

"Hana..."

Hana was silent, sitting quietly on her bed. Tsume gazed lovingly at her oldest daughter.

"Hana... it's been five years."

Hana nodded, hugging her knees.

"Do you think Kyoshi-san would want you to be in grief for five long years?"

Hana was silent, staring at the floor. Then, she shook her head.

"Can you at least try to date someone... if you don't I'll have to find some guy. I know you hate arranged marriages."

Hana refused to meet her mother's gaze. Slowly, she murmured in a broken voice, "Who... who would want to date me?"

Tsume smiled, "You have to find that out yourself."

Hana looked up at her mother, and smiled a small, warm smile.

"Thank you."

* * *

**A/N:** I know... this part sucks... not edited much, for I must sleep... but I wanted to emphasize the relationship between the three Inuzukas. I think, of everyone in Konoha, the Inuzukas are the most close-knit family, and I love them for it. Hmm... what will happen in the next part? I have no idea. Chibi conversation with Itachi! 

Author: I luv you Itachi!  
Chibi Itachi: Burn. –glares-  
Author: -fangirl squeak- HE LOOKED AT ME! WITH CHIBI EYES!  
Chibi Itachi: -performs complicated hand seals- BURN!  
Author: -burns in flames-  
The End.


	3. Scent

**A/N:** Hmm... I really have a lot of fun looking for lyrics based on some of my favorite songs. I know I know... these lyrics aren't that good for this chapter... it's getting hard. You could call me a huge romantic. I love corny romantic stuff... like roses and stuff... not like it ever happened to me... -.- Enjoy! I know... I know, I've been asked, "When will Itachi come in?" He's a bit late... he'll be here in the next chappie or so.**  
****Disclaimer: **Don't own.

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_I can't believe what is front of me  
But what if life end up to my knees  
And I can't figure out how the hell I wound up here  
Everything seemed ok when I started out the other day  
Then the rain came pourin' down  
And now I'm drowning in my fears  
Well as I watch the setting sun  
I wonder if I'm the only one  
Cause everybody tries to put some love on the line  
And everybody feels a broken heart sometimes  
And even when I'm scared I have to try to fly  
Sometimes I fall but I've seen it done before  
I gotta step outside these walls  
__-These Walls-__

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_

**Chapter 3: Scent**

Inuzuka Hana stared at the waterfall. Rushing water filled the air, the water making the air humid, yet cool. Hana walked closer to the waterfall, breathing in the fresh smell. She took a deep breath, then performed hand seals and disappeared in a poof. She appeared in a dark cave, right behind the waterfall. She idly wondered what she was doing here, a hidden secret abandoned for five years.

It was like something led her here.

She touched the slippery walls, the cool water on her fingertips. She took another step into the dark cave, alone. The Haimaru Sankyodai were protective, and even more after that night, refusing to allow Hana out of their sight, and scent. She had made up a flimsy excuse, and the three dogs, especially Aneko, were suspicious.

But Hana knew this was something she had to do alone.

Just... she didn't know what that something was.

She walked further into the cave until she reached the far back, and placed both hands on a large rock. The Chunnin contemplated on how to move the boulder. She pushed on it with brute force, but it didn't budge. Hana sighed, forming hand seals.

A few moments later, the rock moved slightly to the right. Hana slipped in, but was hit hard with a scent she had tried to erase from her mind for so long.

The scent of Uchiha Itachi.

Hana gasped, fighting off the urge to hold her nose. She shut her eyes tightly, but images flooded her head, images of Itachi. Hana threw her eyes open, grasping onto the wall. How could the scent stay so strong after so many years?

The seclusion of the room, isolated in every direction, must have kept the scent inside... but for five years in a damp grotto? No way...unless...

Hana could smell the scent mixing in with water. She took a deep breath. It was so familiar, and it was so strange. Hana looked around the room. A small bed was placed on the far left, the sheets messy. Nostalgia filled the Chunnin as she remembered all those days she napped in that small bed, bounced on it and read numerous scrolls while sitting on that piece of now abandoned furniture. And he was always there with her, scribbling or reading scrolls, manuals, and books, ignoring anything Hana did or said.

Hana's eyes turned toward the desk in the center, still cluttered with paper. Hana could almost see him sitting there, his dark bangs covering those cavernous eyes. Hana sighed ever so softly, as her eyes traveled to the far right, a couch pushed against the wall.

Hana remembered the first time she and Itachi fought, how he had thrown her against the wall, only to have her land on the couch with a soft plop. She remembered how her blood stained the old sofa, but it was gone now. Hana's eyes gazed absentmindedly over the bookshelves that lined the walls, the maps against the walls, and the lone coat hanger in the corner of the crowded room.

The Inuzuka's mind filled with memories, recollections, and memoirs of the past.

_Why is it hard... to think about him?_

Hana could never forget the Uchiha genius. He haunted her thoughts, distracting her from her work, refusing to allow her sleep at night.

The truth was, as Hana had realized a few months after the night when her life had dramatically changed; she did not hate Itachi for what he did to her. Although she would never forgive him for killing Kyoshi, Hana did not loathe Itachi for hurting her ever so deeply, enough to scar her for, possibly, forever. She could never understand _why_. Maybe it was because of the fond memories she kept with the Uchiha, those memories of just hanging out in the waterfall grove, doing nothing in particular.

Or it was something simpler.

* * *

Hana walked toward the coat hanger, her hands touching the fabric of the Uchiha jackets. Memories filled her heart, making the empty gap relive mere moments in time. She was filled with moments as a thirteen-year-old girl, as a naïve child that trusted the Uchiha prodigy with all her heart, and as a girl searching for a friend in the stoic boy. 

Without thinking, the Chunnin raised the jacket to her nose, breathing in the scent.

Somehow, it was comforting.

Hana pulled off her green flak jacket, allowing it to drop on the floor. She sighed, gently taking a jacket off the hanger. Before she knew it, the jacket was one her, fitting her perfectly. Almost in a trance, she crossed to the couch, sitting tentatively on it. She zipped the jacket up and realized that she was the second person in Konoha, next to Uchiha Sasuke, to wear the Uchiha symbol. She wondered _why_ she had put it on, but it was just another question to add to the many others clouding her mind. She lay her head down on the arm rest, closing her eyes.

Itachi's scent filled her nose, making her sharp senses blunt.

Slowly she drifted off to sleep, dreams of those times with the Uchiha prodigy she had known, not knowing that a few miles away, a certain Copy Ninja was being sent to Mangekyou Hell, the same hell Hana knew perfectly well.

* * *

**A/N: **Dun dun dun! Cliffy! Rawr. Please review... er... yeah. Do you want another Chibi Itachi conversation? I think I'll do a Chibi Neji conversation... 

Author: NEJI!  
Chibi Neji: Fate has sent me an annoying fan girl. F U, Fate.  
Author: -gasps- Neji cursed! –scribbles in notebook-  
Chibi Neji: -rolls eyes-  
Author: -squeaks- Neji rolled his eyes! –scribbles in notebook-  
Chibi Neji: SIXTY-FOUR PALMS!  
Author: -twitches on floor- Neji... used... sixty-four palms... ouchie... it hurts...  
The End.


	4. Encounter

**A/N: **Hope you like! Hint for this chappie... although most of you don't read this... a certain Uchiha is going to reunite with a certain Inuzuka! Mwa ha ha ha  
Crap lyrics... I know... Can't find anything better.  
**Disclaimer: **Don't own.

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_I feel I've come to realize  
How fast life can be compromised  
Step back to see what's going on  
I can't believe this happened to you  
This happened to you  
It's just a problem that I'm faced with am I  
Not the only one who hates to stand by  
Complications that are first in this line  
With all these pictures running through my mind  
Knowing endless consequences  
I feel so useless in this  
Get back, step back, and as for me,  
I can't believe.  
-The Hell Song-__

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_

**Chapter 4: Encounter**

Uchiha Itachi watched idly as the freak in green spandex challenged him. He doubted the freak was of any danger, but it would be too troublesome. Itachi knew exactly what the predictable Konoha nins were planning. They would try to stall until more help came.

Didn't they know power is not measured in numbers?

Itachi could let Kisame finish them all off.

His Mangekyou Sharingan twirled back to the original three paisleys, and Itachi closed his eyelids, resting his sore eyes. The first part of his mission was close to complete. If the vessel was still only a Genin, and these were Jonin, kidnapping the Kyuubi could wait. He still needed to complete the second part of his mission to Konoha... a more personal one.

In a little waterfall grotto, certain papers were kept hidden, papers that should not be found by Konoha.

"Kisame," Itachi murmured.

Kisame had that look in his eyes. His inner shark wanted to tear the weak ninjas into pieces, to slash at them with his sword. Kisame growled irritated, not wanting to leave his prey.

And then the two took off.

"Why are we here, Itachi-san?" Kisame asked, staring at the darkness in front of them. Rushing water sprayed behind them, as the two missing-nins gazed at the damp abyss.

"Certain secrets of mine that shouldn't be found," Itachi answered quietly, then turning his head ever so slightly to his partner he murmured, "Stay guard outside."

Kisame nodded, and he was gone in a flash. Itachi walked deeper into the cave, and his eyes blinked in surprise. The boulder covering the hidden room was moved to some extent that someone had been... or was inside.

And there was only one person, to his knowledge, that knew of this room.

* * *

Suddenly, the scent filling Hana's nose intensified, and Hana sat up abruptly.

_No it couldn't..._

Hana shook her head. Her nerves were just jumpy today. Hana looked around the room. It was slightly darker, and it was harder to see. Hana sighed. Standing up, the Chunnin walked to the desk, fumbling for the light. Her hands met only papers and hard wood until finally she found the switch.

She flicked it on and a luminous glow filled the room.

* * *

Itachi gazed at the girl. He blinked.

This was Inuzuka Hana?

Impossible.

Hana could not be so normal after such a night. Normal wasn't the word. She was...

_Different. _

Itachi blinked again.

Her lean frame was coated with a jacket, fitting her form, and accentuating curves Itachi had never seen on any woman their age. She had matured; her once flat chest was...

Was that an Uchiha jacket?

He watched as the Chunnin hooked a strand of chocolate brown hair behind her hair, revealing the blood red tattoo her clan was famous for. Her skin was golden yet pale, and supple lips curled slightly upwards in calm revelation to the light. Long lashes framed intense dark eyes, unlike the once mischievous eyes Itachi remembered from his past. Now, they were serious, but beautiful.

The Chunnin couldn't see him yet. He was hidden in the shadows... his chakra was masked. He had cast genjutsu as a precaution, but couldn't the girl smell him like she usually could smell through traps and illusions?

The Inuzuka shook her head.

"It's nothing... something must be wrong with my nose..." Hana murmured to herself.

Itachi couldn't help but smirk. Hana could smell him, but she was _denying_ it. Somehow, this was not like Hana.

This woman couldn't be Hana. She looked so strong and confident, not the fragile and weak victims of the Mangekyou should be. She was not like Sasuke.

Itachi contemplated if this girl could put up a better fight than those Jonin.

Probably not.

* * *

Suddenly, a kunai whizzed by Hana's ear. Hana gasped. Slowly she raised her head, her eyes meeting crimson ones.

Before she could open her mouth to scream, a hand covered her mouth, another grabbed her forearm in a strong grip.

Black bangs tickled her face as she stared into the blood stained eyes.

"Inuzuka Hana," a deep voice murmured, his hot breath contrasting with his cold hold.

Hana's free hand brought up to grasp the missing-nin's trying to pull it away from her mouth. No use. He had her caught, trapped in her memories that had suddenly rushed back before her eyes.

* * *

Whoa... cliffy. Soo... hmm... what shall happen next? I dunno. **Ideas are welcome for a girl who has major writing blocks. **Sorry it's short. No death threats.  
_Request for Chibi Jiraiya.  
_Chibi Jiraiya: hehehehe... –scribbles in journal-  
Author: Jiraiya-sama?  
Chibi Jiraiya: –looks up- What? –irritated-  
Author: Aren't you supposed to like... have a nosebleed at the sight of girls?  
Chibi Jiraiya: No. You're flat-chested.  
Author: -attacks Chibi Jiraiya with dozens of sharp implements- I DON'T CARE IF YOU'RE CHIBI! DIE!  
Chibi Jiraiya: -looks indifferently- You're still flat-chested.  
Author: Try squinting.  
Chibi Jiraiya: -squints- Nope... still flat.  
Author: -commits suicide-  
The End. 


	5. Illusions

**A/N:** Hope you like! I'm obsessed with these lyrics... so they shall appear quite often. Thank you, Good night New York! Er... or wherever you live!  
**Note:** CAUTION: FLUFF! Also, to make this more... er... fluffy and angsty... I like to stress that **Hana is not stable.  
****Disclaimer:** Nope... still don't own. When I do, I'll tell you.

* * *

_Take a look at my body  
Look at my hands  
There's so much here  
That I don't understand  
Your face saving promises  
Whispered like prayers  
I don't need them  
I don't need them  
I've been treated so wrong  
I've been treated so long  
As if I'm becoming untouchable  
They say that promises  
Sweeten the blow  
But I don't need them  
No, I don't need them  
-My Skin-__

* * *

_

**Chapter 5: Illusions**

Hana struggled, her eyes glued onto those crimson ones. Why was he back? Her mind and her heart were racing.

She came to one conclusion.

She had finally fallen off the brink of sanity. She was currently, utterly, insane, and this man from her past was only an illusion.

She stopped struggling, falling limp. The illusion, surprised, released her and she slumped against his body. She could hear fast heartbeat, and she chuckled quietly.

"You... you seem so real..."

Her mind was leaving her, deserting her only to act upon her heart.

Holding his arms gently, Hana lifted herself up to stare into the eyes she once had seen on a daily basis. They were different, yet the same. Hana brought a shaking hand to cup the illusion's cheek, smiling sadly. Her eyes became watery, as emotions coursed through her body. Memories, only the happy ones, the mere moments just being in each other's company held her, embraced her.

Did she love the man that had hurt her?

Was she always insane, to be treated so wrong, for so long, that she fell in love with a man that had killed her from the inside?

She shivered, his cold touch sending goose bumps across her arms.

She hummed to herself, lost in her insanity, in her own little world. She hummed to the soft sad tunes she used to hum so long ago, in this very same room.

* * *

Itachi had thought his heart had frozen, and had crumbled into pieces. But why, why was there pain where there shouldn't be? The girl, the girl he disdained, he hated, was smiling up at him, a sad yet at the same time happy smile on her lips. Slowly, she had lifted her trembling hand to touch his cheek, her hand callused yet soft. She was everything; warm yet cool, sad yet happy, rough yet smooth. Heartrending tears trailed down her cheeks, as she trembled uncontrollably.

Itachi stood, frozen. He had never expected Hana, Unforgettable and Dangerous Hana to break down, to cry because of how much he had hurt her, and how much she had _loved _him. He had expected her to fight back, sacrifice her life in a vain attempt to somehow hurt him.

But now, so vulnerable, Itachi couldn't move, lost in those teary eyes, those eyes that gave something Itachi had never received, ever, eyes that gave him the one thing valued in every shinobi's life.

Itachi's love in life was power. Power to be better than everyone else. Power that could not be challenged by anything.

But was that a mask for something else?

Itachi gazed down at the Chunnin. Rough Hana, an Inuzuka, violent and never gentle, who was she to cry, to show weakness? The luminous glow of the dim lamp set a different light on the Inuzuka. She didn't look feral, barbaric, jagged around the edges. She was fair, an angel in the darkness, and the only light in his world.

"I... I've always hated you..." Hana whispered, tears streaming faster down her glistening cheeks.

Itachi was silent, his hands dangling uselessly by his sides.

Hana lowered her eyes, her head resting on his chest. He felt his clothes dampen, but he didn't care. Instinctively, protectively, his arms wrapped around her shoulders, her body, pulling her closer into his darkness through the folds of red and black. His mind blurred.

Was he losing his sanity, his control over his feelings, his mind? Was this girl, slowly, pulling away the bonds on his locked away emotions, coaxing them out to follow her every whim? Was he, really, falling in _love_ with her?

Was love really the word to describe the emotions? Could it just be pure hatred and he should just kill her, end her life, so he wouldn't be thrown into such chaos?

He couldn't. He couldn't allow his emotions to run free. A good shinobi does not show his emotions. The mission came before any feelings. This girl, a mere Chunnin and just an average ninja, was not anything he wanted, she was not powerful, she was not stunningly beautiful. She will not make him lose a shinobi's advantage – control.

* * *

Hana had her eyes closed when she felt the damp fabric begin to gently move. Strong arms pushed her away gently, making her sit on something soft. Cold rough hands rested on her eyelids, closing them, and Hana felt sleep creep up.

"Goodbye, Itachi..." she whispered faintly. Then she felt something soft, silky, around her wrist. There was a short pull, and then the warmth disappeared, leaving her cold.

She drifted off to sleep, dreaming dreams of her reality and her illusions blended to one ideal world that couldn't fit anywhere. But she didn't care. She still cried tears, because he was gone, Itachi was gone.

But he was never there... he was only an illusion in her mind.

Afterall... nothing was real now... right?

Right?

* * *

**A/N**: I wanted that mysterious, angsty yet fluffy feel when I wrote it. You might call Itachi OOC, but like someone once told me, it's called _character_ _development_. Or he is really OOC. I never know.  
REVIEW! Sorry it went from total angst to well... fluff. I can't handle too much angst without breaking out into fluff. It's a defect... that's why I suck really badly at angsty stuff. Sorry it's so short... I pinky swear the next one will be longer. I know I know it sucks... I'm random okay? Angst to fluff... to angst... to fluff... to humor. I like variety.  
I'd like to point out: **I want Hana to be unstable. The Mangekyou Sharingan made her unstable. Anyways... review!**


	6. Reality

**A/N:** Well... um... enjoy! I love Evanescence... and I lurve this song. Huh... who knew evanescence is actually a real word.  
**Disclaimer:** Don't own. And personally, if I did, Hana would be dating Itachi. Duh.

* * *

_Blurring and stirring the truth and the lies  
So I don't know what's real and what's not  
Always confusing the thoughts in my head  
So I can't trust myself anymore  
I'm dying again  
I'm going under  
Drowning in you  
I'm falling forever  
I've got to break through  
So go on and scream  
Scream at me I'm so far away  
I won't be broken again  
I've got to breathe I can't keep going under  
-Going Under-__

* * *

_

**Chapter 6: Reality**

She had learned she hadn't fallen off reality, she had learned that everything that passed by her was real. He was really there, it wasn't an illusion. She had been vulnerable to the enemy. She had shown weakness, and she had let him get away, let him escape.

She would never forgive herself.

Inuzuka Hana gazed sadly at the Copy Ninja Kakashi. He lay unconscious, just how she had done five years ago.

Suddenly, the older man groaned painfully, fumbling. Hana watched her eyes full of hurt.

Itachi had hurt her, and the people she was close to again.

"I'm... I'm sorry Kakashi..." she murmured, clutching Kakashi's hand.

The missing-nin's target was Naruto, or more so, the demon inside the boy. Sasuke, futilely tried to stop his older brother, but ended up in the same horrid nightmares as Kakashi currently was living. He would not wake up for a while.

Naruto and the Sannin Jiraiya had left to find the legendary medical nin, Tsunade-sama. She would be the next Hokage, after the fall of the Sandaime. She would also heal Kakashi.

Hana lifted her hand against Kakashi's forehead. Her hand glowed green, as she vainly tried to heal her friend. Nothing.

She stood up, useless to the ninja. Quietly, she left the room, her heart heavy.

She had clammed up, broke down, in the face of adversary.

How the hell was she an excellent Chunnin and vet?

Was it all a lie, her whole idea that she was strong, that she was Unforgettable and Dangerous?

* * *

Nothing was real anymore. Nothing was an illusion. 

She was dying in the inside, her emotions, her thoughts, her guilt filling her mind, her body until she would explode. Trust... she had trusted Itachi all her life.

She had stopped trusting him after that night where blood stained the moon.

And did she begin again?

Yesterday was a blur of darkness, sadness, sweetness.

She could feel his cool touch against her arms, his warm breath caress her cheek, his strong arms holding her close.

She could still smell his scent lingering.

Hana clenched her fist.

Uchiha Itachi was nothing but an enemy to her. He was more of an enemy, he was her very opposite, and the person she must defeat, or be defeated. She had foolishly not held the same goal as Sasuke; she had allowed herself to break down, to see if he would catch her when she fell.

Itachi will be back... he will be back and Hana will be ready.

If Sasuke didn't do it first, she would kill Itachi, even if she had to go to hell and back.

The next time they meet, Hana would not be caught off-guard. She would not break down.

She would kill him for what he is, not what he once was.

She would kill him and be free of any guilty conscience.

Because the bastard is not Uchiha Itachi. There was no Uchiha Itachi... it was all an act for that bastard's amusement.

* * *

Hana threw open the door to her apartment angrily, her three dogs whimpering at her fury. She threw herself onto the futon, as Aneko, oldest and the most reasonable, curled in besides her. 

Hana forcefully told her and the two male dogs what had happened yesterday, and what she knew she must do. The ash gray dogs whimpered, frightened by her idea.

Hana sighed.

"Then at least... I want to hurt him."

The nin-dogs curled up besides her and she absentmindedly stroked their fur, staring at the ceiling.

_Tomorrow will start training._

Hana sighed.

_Training.__

* * *

_

It was the break of dawn, and the Chunnin was at the training grounds, gazing at her environment. There were three training logs to the side, and a small piece of a forest. An open field free of any flowers was under her feet, and it was mostly perfect terrain to train. Haimaru Sankyodai yawned beside her.

"You three use Dynamic Marking... first mark where you want to hit," Hana threw three kunai at the dogs. They caught it expertly in their jaws, bounding off into the forest.

Hana turned towards the training log. She walked towards it, and hit it with brute strength.

_First... turn this log into a stump without using Tsuuga._

Hana slammed a punch into the log, vibrations resounding through the wood and through her arm. Ignoring the pain, she smashed her foot to the side, and continued the actions over and over again.

Hana panted, resting against the stump she had destroyed a few hours ago. She had missed 15 out of her 100 targets, and combat with her dogs had ended with all four of them exhausted. She was bruised badly, and her body was sore.

Wincing, all four stood up, limping home. Hana groaned, fumbling with the key to her apartment.

As soon as she opened the door, the three dogs curled up on the couch. Hana wiped the sweat from her forehead as she headed to the shower.

The hot water relieved her sore muscles, relaxing them. Her tense shoulders were soothed by the rushing water, and suddenly she saw it.

How she had missed something so obvious? On her wrist was a damp and silky... crimson ribbon.

She shut the shower, wrapping a towel around her as she stepped out.

She fiddled with the ribbon, her mind not processing where it came from.

"Oh my gods..."

Itachi gave her this. She stared at it, holding it up to her eyes. The damp fabric was soft between her fingers. Slowly, she pulled out the smooth knot, and the ribbon sat in her hand, as if it was laughing at her.

Why did he give this to her? She didn't need it.

Sighing, she threw it into the trash can, quickly changing into pajamas before crawling into bed.

However, late that night, someone fished it out and placed it gently on the counter.

* * *

**A/N: Ooohhh... well... I'll be doing time skips for the next couple of parts... making it move a bit faster... way too slow. This part barely edited so explanation to why it sucks... So... hope you like and please review!  
Whoa... I'm gonna bring in a new OC... I wonder how you guys will like him... mwa ha ha ha... sorry no Chibi this time...**


	7. Training

**A/N:** Please enjoy. Sorry it's been a while. School's finally caught up and I'm soo busy. There's gonna time skips around... cuz this'll take forever if I keep going at a pace of zero. Wheee! I bring in yet another OC!  
**Disclaimer:** I think people have enough common sense to know I DON'T OWN NARUTO! So... damn you disclaimer! Damn you to hell!

* * *

**Chapter 7: Training**

She kept training at every chance she could. Work lessened her time, the wounded animals increasing due to harder and harder missions ever since the Sand invasion. She had got somewhat stronger, stressing her muscles so pain would not be a handicap.

She continued to train, as Kiba went on a mission to rescue Uchiha Sasuke.

She knew they could not bring the boy home. It would be a failed mission, and Kiba would risk his life. She knew of Sasuke's goal, of what he wanted. She knew what he had lost, and who had stolen it. She had accepted the fact that Sasuke would go to Orochimaru to attain his goal.

She could not stop him, Kiba could not stop him, and even Uzumaki Naruto could not stop him.

She had been informed that Kiba left, she requested a solo A-ranked mission.

Fighting for her life kept her mind busy from Kiba's.

She had returned weary and tired, and Kiba was not home. It was a very large percentage that Kiba would not come back alive. He may not even come back at all.

* * *

Inuzuka Hana wiped her eyes fiercely, her fists stained with blood. Slamming her knuckles into a training log did not stop her heart from breaking. Her muscles were on the verge of giving out, but she did not stop her movements, fearing that if she stopped, she would break down again.

Hana could not afford to be weak anymore.

She lifted her head up, eyes red from tears scanned the area.

She reached into her weapon pack, using her nose to pinpoint the intruder and threw it very close towards the one major organ she could pierce... the heart.

There was a rustle, and the intruder stepped out.

Hana stared at him, her eyes wide and more tears formed behind her eyes.

The intruder smelled like Kyoshi.

* * *

He had long dark brown hair pulled back in a ponytail, with dark bangs that framed his face. Olive green eyes gazed into her tear stained ones, and a smile was on his face. He wore an ANBU uniform, the mask of a dog pulled upwards on the top of his head. A large katana was strapped on his back, his hands gloved and holding the kunai she had thrown.

He was not Kyoshi. Kyoshi was not an ANBU, he did not have olive green eyes, and was too ordinary to be the startling man in front of her.

Hana stared at the stranger, and her three dogs bristled besides her. A dark wolf appeared by the man and Hana gasped.

"You're... an..."

"Okamisora," he finished; his voice a deep baritone.

Hana suddenly felt self conscious, blushing as she straightened.

"Gomennasai..."

"It's fine..." he shrugged off the attack as if it was nothing. It probably was.

Hana looked away. She was crying... how was she a ninja? And this... person... was related to Kyoshi.

Okamisora Kyoshi. He died to save her alive. He was incinerated by Itachi... and Hana had given in to his murderer. Hana had fallen in love with his murderer.

He watched the girl hold back tears. She knew who he was, as he knew who she was. She was guilty for Kyoshi's death.

"You're Inuzuka Hana, right?" he said tentatively.

She nodded.

"I'm..."

"Kyoshi's brother," she murmured.

He gazed at her.

"Right."

"Well..." she sighed, refusing to meet his gaze. "I should be going now."

She turned. He watched her shoulders shake slightly, and he couldn't see her so guilty. He had loved his brother all his life... but this girl should stop blaming herself!

"It's not your fault."

She did not look back, but she stopped walking. She spoke softly, her voice barely audible.

"He died, and I'm alive. He was strong, and I'm weak. He didn't want to go, and I wanted to. Who deserves to live?"

"Your intentions were good, noble shinobi ways. Do you think Kyoshi wants you to be sad?"

Suddenly, her temper flared.

"No he doesn't! I know he doesn't! He wants me to keep living and to stop grieving like a weak pathetic idiot!" she screamed turning back around so he could see the tears she cried, the emotions she wanted to release. "But can't anyone see? It hurts to forget!"

She shivered visibly as her voice lowered. "I'm scared... I hate it..."

Was this the famous Inuzuka Hana he had heard Kyoshi talk about so long ago? His deceased brother told him about the strong girl who could not fall, who could not cry. He was told tales about a girl who was beautiful and tough, a girl who protected the weak and beat the strong, a capable kunoichi, and a dusty goddess.

* * *

"No one is blaming you for Kyoshi's death."

Hana refused to meet his gaze. Her three dogs growled, glaring at him.

"He was supposed to die somehow."

She looked up, confusion in her eyes.

"What?"

"He's always been the weakest. He was supposed to die young."

"How can you say that?" she growled.

He looked at her gravely and continued in a serious tone, "It was good that he died protecting someone. And since you're still alive and that he actually _hurt_ Uchiha Itachi, a monster who leading Jonin could barely scratch, he died with highest honors."

"I'd rather have him alive."

"So we all. It's the way life works, the way fate leads us."

"You did not see him die. No one deserves to die the way he did."

"Incinerated by black flames."

She nodded, her eyes reliving the trauma. There was another long awkward silence.

"My name's Seiko."

The girl looked away, her dark eyes cast downwards. She did not move, and neither did he.

"I... could help you train, if you want."

"No... thanks," she answered quietly.

Seiko was silent, watching her. She didn't fidget or even look nervous under his gaze.

"I smell like him, don't I?"

Hana nodded. He sighed, and disappeared in a flash without another word.

* * *

**A/N:** Another OC, eh? I really don't like them... since I tend to veer towards Mary-Sue/Gary-Stu so I prefer using concrete characters that already have flaws and it's a hell lot easier to write. Ah well... please review... I knpw it sucks... but I don't have much time. Thank you all for your patience! –bows gratefully-

**Need to take a vote. Please review and tell me if you want a happy or sad ending so I can start planning. Thanks! And no, it won't end so soon. **


	8. Drink

**A/N:** Guess what? Happy ending! And since this is an Hana x Itachi fic, they will end up together... or close. So, well, enjoy this part, and sorry for the delay, school is buggy.  
Forgot lyrics in the other... so I guess there will be some in this one?  
**Disclaimer:** Hobby alert!

* * *

_All of the things that I want to say just aren't coming out right  
I'm tripping on words  
You've got my head spinning  
I don't know where to go from here  
Cause it's you and me and all of the people with nothing to do  
Nothing to prove  
And it's you and me and all of the people  
And I don't know why, I can't keep my eyes off of you  
There's something about you now  
I can't quite figure out  
Everything she does is beautiful  
Everything she does is right  
-You and Me

* * *

_**Chapter 8: Drink**

She clutched angrily at the limp hand between hers, hot tears burning down her cheeks. His ragged breathing and whispers did nothing to soothe her.

"I-I'm fine..." he whispered painfully.

"Don't talk," she growled, her voice brimming with pain and grief. She lifted her hands, dimly chakra green as she began to re-heal again the wound on his side.

"It-it's fixed..."

"Kiba, I told you not to talk," she tried to keep a stern tone, finishing again for the millionth time at vainly trying to heal a wound already healed on the outside. She crossed the room, running her hands around the small white puppy, trying to soothingly hum to calm her three dogs. They whimpered, nudging the motionless puppy.

She would kill him for what his brother did to hers. She would hurt him for what he did to her. She would vainly die to cause him pain for the countless people he killed.

"Rest," she murmured, whistling softly to call her dogs. She turned to leave, the jagged breathing and slow heartbeat urging her to stay.

"Bye, Kiba, Akamaru."

They didn't return the words as she left, wiping at her tears.

* * *

Standing in the hallway, watching her was Seiko and his wolf. 

"Hana-san," he greeted gravely, as she ignored him.

She walked down the hallway in the opposite direction, closing her eyes and mentally begging him not to follow. She heard footsteps, and his scent drew closer.

"Maybe a drink would make you feel better."

And for reasons she could not explain, she agreed. She couldn't say no to him. She just couldn't.

* * *

They sat in a small restaurant, her eyes never meeting his. He offered her the drink, and she took it without a word. She had always known what alcohol could do to her body, but she didn't care. Being an Inuzuka, her body was more tolerant of the liquid than others, and she sipped the bitter drink. Wincing from the taste, she slammed the cup down, opening her eyes. 

She looked around, her eyes full of jealousy at the leisurely couples lounging, drinking, and laughing. Why did they live happy, normal lives, while hers was ripped out from under her? Why did they live perfectly fine, rather content lives while hers was filled with angst and pain?

He smiled back at her, and Hana felt slightly dizzy from the drink. Maybe she wasn't _that_ tolerant of alcohol.

"Um..." she broke the silence. "Arigatou for taking me here... I guess... I mean, like, it's nice of you and all..."

She was tripping on her words, as she looked away.

"It's fine. I've always wanted to meet you," he replied. Hana didn't know what to say to that.

Awkward silence passed between them.

"Do you feel better?" his voice was concerned, which somehow made Hana embarrassed, yet pleased.

Hana nodded, a rosy tinge appearing on her cheeks as she continued to sip the drink, trying to keep her hands busy. Her head spun from the alcohol, but she didn't care. Right then, Hana felt safe and secure, she felt comfortable. Quickly draining the rest of the contents, she shut her eyes and spots of colors passed before them.

He poured her another drink, and she took it gratefully, not bothering to wait as the contents disappeared down her throat. She gazed at the man in front of her, a blush replacing the slight tinge.

He sure was on the handsome side.

She faintly registered the confused whimpers from the Haimaru Sankyodai, as she shooed them away to return to their food. Her eyes returned to Seiko, a smile curving on her lips. She leaned closer, breathing in his scent.

Gods, she missed that smell. It was soothing and it was familiar.

"How's training?" he asked, his words not even the slightest slurred. Hana reveled in the deep, rich, voice before answering with slurred words.

"Good... it sure gets lonely though, no challenge."

Seiko nodded, pouring her a third cup.

"You know, you can come an' help me... being an ANBU an' all," she smiled, drinking down her third cup. She shrugged; her actions indistinct from the sake. He reached over and sternly put his hand over her cup, stopping her from another.

"I wouldn't think you can't handle alcohol," he grumbled.

Hana hiccupped, trying to glare at him but only managing a half-hearted growl. She didn't want to leave him, so she could handle not drinking.

They stared at each other, and then the ANBU seemed to snap out of a trance and look away.

"Hana-san..."

"We should get going," Hana filled the awkwardness with the first thing that popped into her mind. Seiko nodded, paying for them as they stood up. Both his wolf and the three dogs joined them as they headed back to Hana's apartment.

Hana's vision and scent blurred, as she held Seiko's arm without realizing the contact. She closed her eyes, not that it mattered since Seiko and the Haimaru Sankyodai began to guide her to her place, as the alcohol took full reign over her senses.

She didn't see the blush on the older boy's cheeks.

* * *

Seiko was constantly aware of the people surrounding him. He always was and was particularly uncomfortable around people that watched him. He was especially conscious on bring a drunk Inuzuka home, especially the prettiest, and single, one in the clan. She leaned against him, her breathing serene and the scent of metal, tears, and ironically flowers filled his nose, intoxicating him. Sure enough, people watched the two, their eyes assessing the situation and somehow approving. He felt angry at them, for assuming something that was not there, for thinking they were something they weren't. He wanted desperately to not be in such spotlight, to be watched. But he could not leave Hana, he could not leave her alone. So he took her for a drink to soothe her tension and now she was intoxicated and leaning in his arms. 

Kyoshi was not wrong when he had said Hana was beautiful. She was more than that, somehow, with the real Inuzuka personality buried under the austere composure that marked her as one of the best kunoichi in Konoha. Her handprint was stamped against him, and he had fallen for her at first sight, just how Kyoshi had done five years ago.

It felt wrong, to be in love with a younger deceased brother's love, but it somehow felt right. It was right in the eyes of both the Okamisora and Inuzuka clan, as he had overheard on a joint clan meeting between the two animal-using tribes. He could not do it, his conscious and respect of Kyoshi refusing to allow it.

Because no matter how weak his younger brother was, Seiko loved him.

They reached her apartment, as she fumbled with the keys and he gently took them from her, unlocking the door. She smiled, murmured a thanks as the Haimaru Sankyodai strode in, leaving him and his wolf alone with her. Hana smiled; a blush on her cheeks that made her look absolutely... adorable, in a sense.

He nodded, trying to return the smile, and he realized stunned that she was leaning in to him, that she was getting closer.

A quick peck on the cheek and his face met the wooden door as it slammed shut. He stared dumbfounded at the unmoving door, silence filling the empty hallway, one hand instinctively raised to his cheek.

* * *

**A/N:** Getting tired of the same old emo crap with "Ugh... I hate my life" and "Angst! Pain!". Bugs me. So I tried (in a very bad attempt) to somehow lighten the mood by making the depressing Hana drunk! So... er, review, please, so I know how to improve.  
HAPPY HANA X ITACHI ENDING AT THE END! WHEEE!  
And Seiko will not be dead. I like him more than Kyoshi. 


	9. Tea Shop Nonsense

**A/N:** So thank you readers... and hope you like this part! It's sort of a time skippy... cuz really, this is going to slow for my taste. I wanna get into the real drama!  
I'm in a happy mood, so no emo crap.  
**Disclaimer: **Do you _think_ I own Naruto?

* * *

_Another turning point;  
A fork stuck in the road.  
Time grabs you by the wrist;  
Directs you where to go.  
So make the best of this test  
and don't ask why.  
It's not a question,  
But a lesson learned in time.  
So take the photographs  
and still frames in your mind.  
Hang it on a shelf  
In good health and good time.  
Tattoos of memories  
and dead skin on trial.  
For what it's worth,  
it was worth all the while.  
Time of your life

* * *

_**Chapter 9: Tea Shop Nonsense**

Time wore on, as it usually does, and in the next year, Hana began to change for the better. She began to smile more, to laugh, to begin to become the older image of what she once was – an Inuzuka. She spent more and more time with the Okamisora Seiko, and he became a regular visitor of the Inuzuka household as she did in the Okamisora household. Seiko became clan leader of his own, and thus, was ready to marry and bear children. Hana had likewise become stronger, and the prospect of Inuzuka clan leader shifted to the veterinarian. She had turned down marriage proposals and even mere dates, with the simple excuse that she didn't like that certain suitor was not her type and he should not take offense (which they usually did). Konoha residents began to suspect there was something more than friendship between the two animal users, and the respective clan elders watched on approvingly. This was proved as somewhat accurate, when an enraged Kiba reported that Seiko had given Hana her first official kiss (not knowing of that one moment so long ago when Itachi was still a shinobi in Konoha) on New Year's over sake, before both of them passed out on the couch.

Months passed, and Naruto had left to train with the Sannin Jiraiya, while Kiba pushed his limits again and again on harder and harder missions. His favorite gray jacket had been shredded to smithereens about the four to five months after Naruto left on a mission, and so he had to get a new one which he had to take good care of and wash every two weeks or so, until of course, he began to look "semi-stylish" and "took personal hygiene into account" in the eyes of girls. Thus, earning himself a new liking among the girls for his "protective aggressiveness" and his "hot messy hair" and do **not** forget his "sexy formfitting outfit that made him look even hotter". He received brownie points for his rigorous training which formed hard-earned muscles, and his "playfulness". Although Kiba had his share of girlfriends over the course of the year, Hana secretly knew Kiba's longing and crush still rested on that shy Hyuuga girl on his team, Hinata. Among other things, Umino Iruka became a Jonin, Hatake Kakashi stopped reading Icha Icha Paradise for seven days and a quarter of a day before rereading the series again, and Hana became a Tokubetsu Jonin soon after this phenomenon, specializing, like her mother, on tracking and survival, while still keeping the title as Konoha's veterinarian.

Little did anyone know, that the reason Hana got better, got stronger, was because Seiko told her to.

He reasoned that being in grief and regretful about life makes a shinobi weak, and if Hana wanted to be strong, she should just drop the sadness crap. If she wanted to do good, well, just shut up about Kyoshi, and get better.

And Hana listened and followed without a question or hesitation.

Seiko was like that, strong and blunt, he was a true shinobi. He was everything she wanted to be, everything she needed.

* * *

She smiled as the dog licked her hand happily; relieved its pain was over. She fed it a treat and brought it back out to its anxious owner. 

"She's feeling better," Hana said smiling at the nervous woman who held the auburn puppy tightly in her arms.

"Arigatou!" she thanked profusely before exiting the office.

Hana sighed tiredly. Her department was a wing in the Konoha hospital, which was more than enough room for her to check, heal, and work on patients. Occasionally, she had to do trips outside of the hospital, such as a birth of cattle or of that sort, which gave her fresh air and a nice contrast from the stifling air in the Konoha hospital.

Her nose caught a scent she easily recognized, as she smiled and walked back into her cluttered office.

He sat at her desk, his feet on the mahogany wood, gazing at her lazily.

Hana grinned, walking over and promptly shoving his feet off her table as she sat in its place on the desk.

Seiko smiled, sitting up and taking her hands.

"You doing anything tonight?"

"Training," Hana replied as she pushed his hands away and hopped off the desk to pet the dark grey wolf besides him.

"Wanna have a drink?"

"What's with you and alcohol?" she growled, mock exasperated.

"It's good and relieves stress."

"How was your mission?" Hana responded, changing the subject.

He ignored her question, "So do you want to?"

"No. I can't have too much sake. Besides, I get a huge hangover and can't go to work so I have to stay at your apartment. I have a mission tomorrow."

It had happened many times. Seiko managed to persuade her to drink and she ended up at his apartment, crashing on his couch. Of course nothing happened, they weren't really that much of a couple, although Konoha had officially announced them as one. Not that either of them cared.

"So?" Seiko said carelessly, knowing perfectly well how important it was.

"So..." Hana stood up and slipped off her medical jacket, hanging it up and changing into her Chunnin vest.

Seiko shrugged, running a gloved hand through his long dark brown hair, "Your shift's over?"

Hana nodded, whistling for her nin-dogs as she walked to the door. She stopped for a few moments, and added, "Aren't you coming?"

Seiko smiled, standing up.

* * *

"Why the hell am I here?" 

"Oh, don't be such a baby," Hana sighed, leaning back in her chair. "It's a nice place."

"It's a damn tea shop," he snarled a little too loud. A few girls looked over, a little offended, but upon seeing who it was they changed their minds, speaking a little bit louder and throwing their hair back flirtatiously, trying to catch his eye. Hana smiled, watching Seiko would rather prefer trying to drink his jasmine tea like a man than the flirty girls surrounding him.

"Tea not manly for you?" She teased. "Big strong men like you need sake by the bottle than little tea cups."

"Damn straight."

"Stop cussing, you're scaring the fan girls."

"Shut up."

Hana grinned, noticing the eyes of the girls reach hers as they tried to burn her with their eyes.

"Ooh, you got something in your hair," Hana leaned forward suggestively, messing his hair up playfully.

This was fun, screwing with their minds. She could just imagine the horrendous thoughts, nasty words, and death threats running through the innocent looking girls' minds as they simultaneously glared at the Inuzuka who was sitting rather closely to the hot man in the small tea shop. If looks could kill, those fan girls would have had her toast. But luckily, they don't.

Seiko growled; throwing his head back as his dark locks fell back in its usual fan girl worthy place. A few girls giggled, and one obnoxious blonde said rather loudly, "That's hot."

Hana's grin widened, as she stared straight at the fan girl and said clearly, "Thanks."

The blonde glared at her with her bright sky blue eyes before huffing angrily. Seiko glanced over, holding the tiny tea cup with both hands, as he gazed lazily at her.

The blonde blushed under his gaze, as the rest of the fan girls redirected their death threats to her. Seiko looked at her for a mere second, a hell lot shorter than it took her to realize he stopped looking at her, before turning his head back to Hana.

"She thinks you're hot?" he asked, a smirk dancing on his lips, playing along with Hana's rather rude humor.

"Obviously," Hana replied, grinning as the girl flushed even harder. She stood up. "Let's go."

The two paid and left knowing all eyes in the shop stared at them, some gaping, some admiring, and some pissed off.

As the tingle of bells marked their exit, Seiko grinned, reaching for Hana's hand and squeezing it gently. The three dogs and one wolf curled up at the entrance lazily stood and followed.

"That girl will hate you forever."

"Yeah, I know. Not like I'll ever see her again."

"These are the days we'll look back to and laugh," He laughed as Hana hissed at the wind and yanked off his own jacket to throw over her shoulders. He didn't mind.

"Exactly," Hana smiled, tucking her hands in the warm jacket pockets, chilled by the wind. She looked up at the man beside her, before looking back down and repeated quietly, "We'll look back and laugh."

* * *

**A/N:** See how lame my humor is? Well, it's lame, or I'm just really crappy at humor fics. So, please don't review and tell me how lame my humor is, because I ALREADY KNOW. I prefer helpful criticism, er... funny things that I could add (while crediting you) and the usual helpful comments that make me oh so happy! -grins and begs with chibi eyes-

I figured my stuff was too sad and everyone needs a happy lift, so I give it to you in the form of lame humor and a rather rude Inuzuka.


	10. Proposal

**A/N:** Um... I'll bring Itachi in soon enough, but I don't want emo sadness to ruin a happy ending last chapter. Maybe next chapter. Yup, that sounds good. Egads... I need a lot of time skippingness.  
**Disclaimer: **Don't own.

* * *

_Somewhere there's speaking  
It's already coming in  
Oh and it's rising at the back of your mind  
You never could get it  
Unless you were fed it  
Now you're here and you don't know why  
He's everything you want  
He's everything you need  
He's everything inside of you  
That you wish you could be  
He says all the right things  
At exactly the right time  
But he means nothing to you  
And you don't know why  
Everything You Want

* * *

_

**Chapter 10: Proposal**

"Let's get married."

Inuzuka Hana threw open her eyes, sitting abruptly, as she twisted her fingers away from his. Her legs were thrown over the armrest, as they dangled over the edge, her head resting on the other armrest. She sat in his lap as he hummed softly, both resting in comfortable silence, before the Okamisora promptly proposed in the most casual manner anyone could. The four nin-dogs lifted their heads slightly, before nodding off to sleep. They really didn't care much about human love affairs, as long as it didn't affect battles and their food. They did not understand why humans blow simple mating out of proportions and have 'weddings' and so-called 'love'.

Hana was stunned, stupefied to the extent that movement could not be attained. All she could do was just sit there, on his lap, gawking at his calm demeanor. She opened her mouth, before closing it again. Was he being serious?

"What?" she blurted out. Seiko smirked, pushing her off of him to stretch his legs.

She landed on the floor with a loud thud as the older boy stood up, unfazed by her utter pain of ass meeting wood. She sat on the floor, letting out an irritated snarl, before crossing her arms and sticking her tongue out at the ANBU, just like a proper Tokubetsu Jonin should to make a statement.

Seiko chuckled that deep chuckle, as Hana's heart skipped a beat. He heaved her up with one arm, another wrapping around her waist, pulling her closer.

"Is that a no?" he murmured, his hot breath tickling her ear as he nipped it playfully.

Hana's voice caught in her throat.

* * *

_She walked in, instantly meeting the eyes of the clan elders. Her heart dropped. She knew exactly what they were discussing._

_Her marriage._

_For one year she had been rejecting prominent suitors from animal-using clans around the country and even some from other hidden villages, turning down dates with many shinobi around her age, using the feeble excuse that she didn't want to. Now, she knew they were going to force her into an arranged marriage; they had after all, given her a year to look for love. The thought of marriage was hidden in the back of her mind, the last item on her list of priorities. Truthfully, Hana was scared._

"_Hana..." Tsume started._

_Hana masked her distaste with indifference, as she simply stated, "I know."_

_Silence filled the room, as the elders stared at her rigid figure. The Haimaru Sankyodai growled, annoyed at their master's displeasure, and Hana silenced them with a piercing glare._

_Suddenly, the room erupted back into conversation, acknowledging her presence, and simply, not caring._

"_What about Okamisora Seiko? He is still unmarried, and an honorable..." an elder suggested._

_At the mention of her supposedly considered 'boyfriend', Hana blushed prettily, looking away, the indifference melting quickly. The elders smirked approvingly, knowing they hit a tender spot even at the mention of his name. Okamisora Seiko, her best friend and the handsome ANBU who just happened to be absolutely perfect had instantly become Inuzuka Hana's husband-to-be as soon as they heard of that gossip Kiba spread on New Year's Eve._

_But Hana wasn't ready for marriage. Yes, she was nineteen-years-old, an age fully ripe and bursting for matrimony and for children. Normal village girls entered marriage and bore children at fifteen, sixteen even while most kunoichi married at the age of seventeen, eighteen. Hana was way past that, her mind clouded with training, with past horrors and pain._

_The other elders agreed fully with the first, nodding proudly. They wanted the most beautiful Inuzuka in many generations to live a successful, full life, and what better than in the arms of the prodigious Okamisora?_

_She had entered the room for little more than a minute, before she excused herself. Sure, dating Seiko was fun, great even, but marriage?

* * *

_

"Um..." Hana answered intelligently.

"..." Seiko waited, one hand trailing up to stroke her hair. His hot breath that tickled her skin had fuzzed her mind, and she couldn't think straight.

"Why?" she finally asked.

She could feel him smile than actually see as he answered calmly, "Why not?"

"D-Don't you think we're too young for that?" Hana stammered, her fingers digging into the arm around her waist. She twitched involuntarily, unable to calm her mind. The rosy blush still tinged her cheeks, showing off her embarrassment.

"You should have been married to me a year ago," Seiko answered.

Hana groaned silently. That had been a bad point in their relationship, that proposal so long ago she desperately tried to forget. He had stammered out the words, the first ever in his life to be so nervous, holding up a beautiful diamond ring, and she had simply rejected him flat out. He had taken it strongly, and their friendship became a mix of awkward silences, longer routes home, and avoidance. Hana had ended it with a simple kiss and an 'it's too early' plea.

But now, he had the upper hand, he controlled the situation. She was stammering, blushing, the one with the uncontrollable butterflies, and he was calm, collected and oh so damn sexy.

"I... I..."

Suddenly her mind flashed back to a dark figure, clad in red and black. Dark hair fell against his thin pale face, crimson eyes staring into her soul, paisleys twirling. She shook her head quickly, mentally berating herself for thinking about _him_ of all people. He was an enemy, a criminal, not the man she loved, not the man she longed to marry. She hid the fact that the same criminal haunted her minds even when she was with her boyfriend, that the same enemy was by her side every night, those crimson eyes gazing impassively behind her eyelids. No, the Uchiha was only a foe, a foe she must defeat and thus, must never forget, not the man she loved to marry. Because that man was proposing to her right then and there, that man had always loved her, and had held her hand as she took her first steps. She no longer was hurt by thinking of that missing ninja, she no longer daydreamed for those olden days to return, those days she sat in his twirling chair, stealing it away from a thirteen year old Uchiha prodigy. She strove for acceptance from him, and she no longer needed his smirk, his glance her way. She no longer wanted to be Uchiha Hana, the deep guilty secret she hid from the world. Because those dreams were extinct, they no longer needed to exist, and thus, were terminated.

"You do love me right?" he whispered, and Hana could hear a sense of insecurity. She instantly nodded, her heart trusting every word.

He was after all, everything she could ever possibly want. He was even more; he became everything she could possibly need, in both physical and mental ways. He was strong, fun, handsome, nice, everything anyone would want. He had loved her back fully and sturdily, accepting her dark past in warm arms. He had lifted her up, so she loved him for the fact that she had always loved him, even more than she loved Kyoshi. She had loved the way he had become the mix of her once-old loves, a mix that intoxicated her.

"M-Marriage is a really big step..." Hana said her confidence dropping as she searched for an excuse, any excuse. She never viewed matrimony as much happiness and knew it was definitely not an easier life, and that view dropped more down the 'Happiness List' when her colleagues got married, and all they did was _complain_ about their spouse or boast about their exciting nights in gruesome detail. She wanted neither in her life, perfectly content in training, healing, and the occasional drink with her best friend.

He snorted. "You didn't say anything the first time we've fuc-"

"I was drunk," Hana retorted. "I don't even remember it. You shouldn't use a girl when she's vulnerable, you big perverted-"

She had used that excuse, trying to hide the embarrassment that she _did_ indeed remember that hot summer night, when she threw away her innocence to a night of intense pleasure and alcohol. Seiko knew it all along, but he continued to ease her nerves by pretending he didn't know.

"You're scared," he interrupted, a mischievous flash in his dark eyes.

"No," Hana snarled a little too quickly, confirming his belief.

"I'll be extra gentle and take it slow," Seiko smirked, as Hana punched him in the arm, blushing hotly.

His lips instantly met hers before she could retort venomously and she instinctively leaned against him before closing her eyes and greeting back.

As the intensity increased, her closed eyes pictured again the man clad in black and red, the enemy, the criminal. She tried to push away the thoughts of him, as she held him even closer. She loved the Okamisora, not the Uchiha, the Uchiha no longer existed in her life, he was just a fragment of the past, a fragment, that ever to return, would never destroy her again.

Before she knew it, his mouth had left hers, a sultry voice by her ear as he repeated, "Is that a yes or a no?"

"What do you think? Yes, you dumbass." she grinned, opening her eyes.

Seiko smiled back, before meeting her lips again. He murmured soft words that made her heart flutter, higher and higher, and then shatter in millions of shards.

"I love you."

Tears formed behind her eyes as she gazed into his ecstatic ones. She realized that from that point forward, people could no longer see her as Inuzuka Hana. They would see her as Okamisora Hana, the fiancée of the great ANBU, Okamisora Seiko. They would greet her as an Okamisora, and they would never imagine her as Uchiha Hana, they would never find out about her past secrets, her past longings.

From that point forward, she could not save herself for the love she had kept hidden, she could no longer fantasize of a world where Itachi had never murdered his clan, a world that she was happily in love with the Uchiha, an upside down world that allowed her to dream of the horrors of reality as just illusions.

And she knew those dreams; those wants were wrong, unrealistic, and traitorous to both Konoha and to Seiko. Those dreams that she instantly scolded away as soon as she caught herself, those dreams that kept her up at night, using sheer will to hold back tears to not wake the sleeping dogs beside her.

She smiled back, allowing the tears to fall as she stammered out in a voice that was too high for her own, "I love you too."

Inuzuka Hana could always interpret her feelings, and her tears unfortunately were not from joy as Seiko had saw them as. The salty tears were from the simple fact that she loved a man she could not have, she loved Uchiha Itachi, and now, that chance was obsolete, that small possibility blown into the wind, disappearing in the sky.

* * *

**A/N:** eh crappy much? I know, it is, but I wanted to gradually descend into, er, angst. Itachi will appear in the next chapter (I hope) Please review! 

Whee... they're engaged! Ahh... the drama. It's so intense! (not)


	11. Infiltration

**A/N:** Well... I've procrastinated enough. Sorry for these delays and the long waits but I've been so busy and so exhausted, it's tough. I have no idea what will happen, and I'll just follow whatever my fingers want to type. Agh I found awesome music by Plain White T's that match almost perfectly with my story, but too late. Ah well, I'll still use them, and there will be flashbacks in this one.  
**Disclaimer: **Don't own.

* * *

_You were everything I wanted  
You were everything a girl (ninja) could be  
Then you left me brokenhearted  
Now you don't mean a thing to me  
All I wanted was your  
Love.  
Hate is a strong word  
But I really, really, really don't like you  
Now that it's over  
I don't even know what I liked about you  
Brought you around and you just brought me down  
Hate is a strong word  
But I really, really, really don't like you  
I really don't like you  
Thought that everything was perfect (perfect)  
Isn't that how it's supposed to be?  
Thought you thought that I was worth it  
Now I think a little differently_

_Hate (I Really Don't Like You)

* * *

_

**Chapter 11: Infiltration**

Fifth Hokage Tsunade-sama stood up, striding towards the large glass window overlooking the village, her eyebrows furrowed in anger and her hands clasped tightly behind her back. She frowned deeply, recounting the report. An enemy had infiltrated Konoha, and the village was in grave danger. All ANBU were patrolling the village, guarding the innocent and ordering the citizens back into their respective homes. The villagers, surprised, had complied without question, leaving the streets barely empty. This made it easier to spot any intruders, a strategetic way to pinpoint the spy.

However, the spy's goal no longer resided in the Village Hidden in the Leaves. He was off training with Jiraiya, and would not return for quite some time. The Kyuubi and its Jinchurriki was not part of Konohagakure anymore.

She debated whether or not to send a warning through the entire village, tell them why they could not leave their residences. Deciding against it, she realized the chaos would help the spy hide and make the village weak. He would feed off the fear, and make his direct attack that would wound Konoha almost as much as the Sound Invasion.

The enemy was strong, his skills matching those of the great Third Hokage.

Tsunade hoped desperately that no bloodshed would ensue.

* * *

Inuzuka Hana paced through the silent village towards her apartment, a look of pure irritation on her features. Seiko had ordered her to return to her apartment immediately, and Hana did not like being bossed around, even by her own fiancé. His face was grave and commanding, and they had been engaged for what, a week? She needed to talk to him about such communicational problems.

Their respective families were excited by the engagement, never expecting it to be as soon as it had come, not expecting Hana to accept so quickly and for Seiko to propose after that first rejection. Both the Okamisora clan and Inuzuka clan were debating issues between the couple, marital claims, and of course, the wedding.

Barely anyone was on the streets, except for a few ANBU, who wore their traditional masks, hidden from the world in painted animals and dark cloaks. She nodded in greeting to them before walking on, taking shortcuts through the alleys towards her home. The sun was low in the sky, dark clouds filling it, signaling rain.

A dark flash passed before her, as her nose caught a faint smell. Her eyes widened as she instant recognized the smell, a smell of blood and fear, of death and despair. An aroma that had changed now soaked with fresh blood, but still the same scent. All thought processes left her, as she bolted to her apartment, the Haimaru Sankyodai at her heels.

She locked her door frantically, breathing hard. The three dogs bristled with fear, and she ran into her room. She threw open drawers, throwing this frantically to the floor, a desperate attempt to find what she needed. She opened her last drawer, pulling out small chest hidden in a drawer of her desk. She flung it open, the heavy dust filling the air, entering her lungs and eyes. She coughed, rubbing at her wet eyes. A crimson silk ribbon folded neatly gazed up at her, clean and free from any soils and stains. Hana lifted it up, feeling the silk against her callused fingers as she breathed in the scent.

She could smell him; she could almost see him before her eyes. He had infiltrated Konoha, and was now hiding somewhere in the village. He knew where she was, he had saw her run.

The ribbon moved like water through her fingers, oblivious to the pain and the memories it unleashed into the shaking Tokubetsu Jonin.

She knew she should have thrown it out a year ago, but something, something stopped her.

Secretly she knew that she could never forget Uchiha Itachi, and he had given her this small fabric.

Inuzuka Hana knew she had cherished the piece of silk, that she could not lose it.

* * *

She had never hated Itachi. That word, hatred, was strong, pure feelings that she had used to express what she felt towards the stoic boy. But, secretly, Hana never felt such ways. She never could hate him; she could only see him as the quiet ANBU she had spent hours with, not the fallen murderer he had become.

Yes, he was an enemy, a foe, someone she must defeat. But she never hated him. How could she after all those times she refused to forget?

Back then, Itachi was everything she yearned to be; calm, collected, and as hell strong. He was a prodigy, stubborn, and could crush the bones of S-ranked criminals at the mere age of thirteen, a feat not even most Kages could do. Those once admirable traits, still a large part of him, was no longer considered admirable, becoming reasons why Hana should hate Itachi.

Hana slowly wrapped the ribbon around her wrist, the fabric smooth and cool against her trembling body.

She was far away from perfect; she could never match up to him.

Her heart resounded angrily inside her chest, as her mind flashed back to that fateful night, when her life turned upside down, and flipped inside out.

He had broken her heart, slashing it up bitterly as she watched with wide watery eyes the ashes that rose in the wind, slowly filling the air. She had choked in his ashes; she had trembled and sobbed over nothing, over her own weak body, reliving the horrible world of red and black, of fire and darkness.

But that was over. Such nights no longer existed, such nights that she had laid awake were over. The pain he had cast no longer hurt her. Inuzuka Hana was stronger than that, and Seiko had brought her up. Seiko taught her how to stand, and she taught herself how to walk.

* * *

She glanced around her, realizing she could not fight in such a place. Her techniques worked best in open fields, and hell, she would die trying to kill him.

She whistled calmly, the loyalty brewing in the frightened dogs as they obeyed her command and followed her out.

The foursome ran through the streets, running in alleys and taking the chance that they would be mistaken as the enemy. At that thought they ran faster, and she could smell him, she could feel him. She ran into the forest, pulling out two kunai knives as she skidded to a stop, the crimson ribbon still tied around her wrist. She threw a smoke bomb against the floor as she tumbled away from a sharp kunai thrown at her, just missing her left ear.

She could see a dark figure silently touch down in front of her in the smoke, cloak blowing eerily in the breeze, shadowed in the fumes. She glared angrily as he straightened; meeting his crimson eyes that shown out in the haze. They were not the Mangekyou Sharingan, yet.

Her hands formed seals, as they blurred in mixed signals. Chakra burst through her reserves, pumping adrenaline in her blood as the three dogs beside her poofed into her identical replicas. Long talons replaced chipped fingernails, feral eyes gazing at the still shadowed figure.

A kunai in each mouth, the foursome charged towards the enemy, kunais glistening through the smoke. She slashed viciously at his chest, while each dog did the same. Hana could smell the sweet tinge of blood fill the air, before she realized it wasn't his. It was her own. Gasping, she skidded to a full stop, soil kicked up in the air, as her eyes widened and warm blood trickled down her side.

* * *

**A/N: **Hope you liked!! Ooh... I have an OCD with cliffhangers. Sorry. Please review!


	12. Blood

**A/N:** I've been listening to too much Evanescence. It's going to feed off my soul and make me write angsty fics. But the music is beautiful, horrendously scary, but beautiful.  
**Disclaimer: **Don't own.  
**Warning: **BLOODPLAY!!

* * *

_How can you see into my eyes, like open doors  
Leading you down into my core,  
Where I've become so numb  
Without a soul  
My spirit's sleeping somewhere cold, until you find it there and lead it back home  
Wake me up, wake me up inside  
Save me, call my name and save me from the dark  
Wake me up, bid my blood to run  
I can't wake up  
Before I come undone,  
Save me, save me from the nothing I've become  
Now that I know what I'm without, you can't just leave me  
Breathe into me and make me real  
Bring me to life  
Frozen inside without your touch, without your love, darling  
Only you are the life among the dead, all of this sight  
I can't believe I couldn't see  
Kept in the dark, but you were there in front of me  
I've been sleeping a 1000 years it seems  
I've got to open my eyes to everything  
Without a thought, without a voice  
Without a soul  
Don't let me die here  
There must be something wrong  
Bring me to life.

* * *

**Chapter 12: Blood**_

He closed his eyes, his body and mind clear and motionless. He did not care about her well being, about her life. She flew backwards, pushed by the force of his invisible jutsu. She slammed against the tree, her dogs knocked unconscious as they could not stop the impact. A gasp escaped her lips, and his eyes fluttered open.

The blood of his Sharingan fed on the image he saw, of the blood pouring from torn skin, of the pain etched on her face.

His locked and sealed heart rattled against its bars, threatening to open. He had locked away what was left of his heart, freezing it in the past year, keeping it trapped and caught after that day Hana lost her sanity.

Shakily, the girl picked herself up, her blood pooling together under her, the crimson staining her clothes, her skin, and his eyes. It excited him inside, the metallic liquid so dense in the air he could taste it on his lips. A smirk broke from his impassive core, as he breathed in the scent of blood, of so much blood that signaled she could no longer live for much longer. This blood, this blood brought him back to the night he had stained his hands a forever red as each death strengthened his power. He licked his lips, the Inuzuka not able to lift herself off from her knees, her breath in short gasps.

He realized too late that his composure was breaking, that the sight of blood and the thought that it was _her_ blood filled his emptiness, making him predatory. He wanted more; he wanted to taste it and to become alive. He no longer thrived in empty shells, in useless power. He needed to live, to feel the thick liquid in his fingers, to stain his pale skin. He had never touched blood; he had never tasted nor felt it. With hers quickly leaving her body, weakening her simultaneously; a monster was born and the monster wanted to taste and celebrate its birth.

She watched in cloudy eyes as he advanced, the smirk widening as the scent of blood energized his body, making the beast crave more.

He had realized that this, this desire, is what the Shukaku fed on, that this want was what made blood fearsome.

* * *

Hana could see, and she could smell. She could see the desire in his eyes, and she could smell her blood. She knew what he wanted before he understood the feeling brewing. She knew he wanted blood.

She could not escape, running would only excite him more, make his vision blinded to seeing her as prey instead of a human being. She knew of these instincts, these were the instincts of hunting dogs, of tracking dogs. These were the instincts she grew up in, the instincts that told her what she must use to find her escaped prey – their blood.

She needed to escape; she needed her blood to run, to run away and to flee with her. She needed to be saved from the darkness that would envelop her.

A thought jumped into her head, as she played with the idea that the Uchiha was in a trancelike state, that he did not know the monster was controlling him.

"Itachi..." she murmured softly.

He didn't answer, or he just couldn't hear. Hana knew that she needed to awaken him, to fight back the monster for both of them.

"Itachi..." she said louder, raising her head to meet his eyes.

The paisleys swirled, before Hana's vision blurred, and she leaned backwards, still on her knees against the tree.

The sun set slowly, as she could see the faint shine before it was hidden behind black.

She felt herself be lifted up, she felt her body pushed against the hard wood as the black fabric brushed against her skin.

"Stop..." she gasped, as his touch sent shivers down her spine. His fingers tentatively touched her wound, the blood oozing over his hand.

A low growl emitted from inside him, his hot breath against her neck as she gasped shakily. She grabbed the cloak, the fabric balled in her fists.

She felt cold metal replace the warm breaths on her neck and she felt the skin tear and her blood flow.

She was losing blood fast, and it wasn't going to stop.

She shivered involuntarily, cold in the dusk, the air chilling her bones. She could taste her blood, her eyes drowning in black and scarlet.

Her back scraped against the rough bark and she let out a gasp as she felt his hot breath back against her neck, tasting her blood.

"Itachi!"

Her scream seemed to awake him, as he stopped, his grip loosening. His scarlet eyes gazed into her own, as her hand tried to stop the blood flow. Her head spun and she collapsed in his arms, thrown into a black abyss.

* * *

His mind sluggishly comprehended that the limp body in his hands, whose blood was leaving as quickly as it had been shed, was indeed Inuzuka Hana, and that she was facing death so close that he could feel it against him. Her blood dripped down in crimson trickles from his mouth as she became lighter and lighter. He was going to lose her.

Suddenly, he bolted, running towards the Konohan gates at speed he hadn't known existed, towards the Village Hidden in the Leaves.

Midway, he stopped, staring down at the limp body in his arms. Her blood trickled down his cloak, staining him, and making him easy to hunt, even if he were to take it off. He knew he should drop her right there and escape before they could catch him. The moon rose higher in the night sky and her bloodied hand shined softly. He gazed at the ring on her finger, a single simple diamond but it meant her world.

She was engaged, or even married.

He touched the ring, unstained by the blood dripping down her fingers. Slowly, he pulled the ring off. Using blood as lubrication, the gem slipped off her finger easily, as he held the metal in his hand. He looked down at the sleeping kunoichi, her chest barely rising for breath. She coughed, and he quickly flipped her over to splatter crimson on the ground. If not, she would choke on her blood.

He pocketed the ring, before lifting her back into his arms and running towards the village.

* * *

He later could not explain this instinct in him to rescue her, as brights lights turned on and aimed straight at him.

He winced slightly in the beams, hearing distant shouts, and he quickly placed her limp body on the ground in front of him before taking off again, staying in the spotlight for little more than a few seconds.

He could feel no presence chasing him until he had reached the opening where he had fought Hana moments before. He could feel the speed of the ANBU, marking the scent of her blood against him. But those ninja could not keep up with him. He continued through the forest, reaching the borders of the Fire Country by midnight, the ANBU stopping beside the three dogs still unconscious in the opening.

There he shed his bloodied jacket, ripping it in shreds and casting genjutsu to hide its scent and itself in the night, before escaping once more towards the headquarters of his organization.

He knew that the empty shell he possessed had cracked the minute he saw the familiar blood pool from torn skin onto the earth. Itachi had never experienced familiar blood, blood he had seen once, and then twice. Any opponent important enough to be assassinated by him died after their first meeting, not a sliver of a chance to escape or to live on existed after the first glance.

Inuzuka Hana, however, was never that important, thus, given the chance to escape. She was never one he could forget, consciously or even primitively. Her blood had stained him forever, and had awoken the monster that had once killed for the reason to kill, the monster that had murdered his clan.

She had picked up and warmed the old frozen Itachi, the mere weakling that was considered strong yet only a tool to be manipulated, the weakling that turned to power for solace. She had breathed life into him, a life he no longer needed, but wanted.

* * *

Those dark eyes, cavernous and so much like his own, could see him before he could even see himself, her nose picking up thousands of things his eyes would never see. She had known his instincts before he did, and had deteriorated it before it grew too strong.

He felt the beast had taken over too much, that he could feel the power pulsing in his veins, the power he needed to crush anyone in his path, even the damn Hokage. She had broken the spell, she had screamed his name into the heavens and into the hells, and she had effectively killed the power he yearned to return inside him. That night he murdered and showed the shinobi world that Uchiha Itachi was no tool but true power and belonged to no one but himself, and she had destroyed the shell that locked it up.

Her blood had awoken him, and her voice had weakened him.

He frowned, his mission to Konoha completed, yet not. She was the only one alive among the dead, the only one close to his heart that did not die in his hands, that she would be the only person to awaken the power he once possessed, but he had not known she would also effectively weaken it, making it become fragments of its true form.

He had tasted the elixir of his former power, and it had been taken away before he could finish.

His movements were quicker, faster, harder to detect. Now he had felt such power again, he could not give it up so easily. He would regain his supremacy, and he would destroy all in his path, including the Tailed Beasts.

His eyes could see more, his reflexes had skyrocketed. His former power, though weaker, was still there, and he would still salvage it back.

The forgotten murderer of his clan no longer existed. The traitorious missing-nin without a name had died. Uchiha Itachi was back.

* * *

**A/N: **Confuzzling? Intense? Yes, I know, this is what happens when I try to interpret Evanescence's songs. I end up with confused readers and extremely bad bloodplay. I know Itachi seems a little OOC but there's a reason, and if you really didn't get it, PM me and I'll try to explain the best I can. All stories sound better in my head, trust me.So, please review so I can keep writing and maybe stop rambling about god damn power and blood?

Also, if anyone wants to start a buddy system with me on various subjects including Naruto, I'm just a PM away!


	13. Hospital

**A/N: **Hm... enjoy. No lyrics sorry.  
**Disclaimer: **Don't own.

* * *

**Chapter 13: Hospital**

Red splatters and black billows filled her dreams, making her awake in sweat and pain. She gasped, breathing hard, unable to sit up.

The pain in her side was excruciating, and her head spun. Where the hell was she?

_Itachi._

Her mind instantly replayed the events, and she sluggishly realized that it was over. Her surroundings told her she was in the Konoha hospital, and that she was alive.

A small smile crept on her lips.

_He saved me, after all._

A relieved whimper from the corner meant that the Haimaru Sankyodai were fine.

"Hey... you guys feeling better?" Hana murmured, and the three dogs walked towards her, jumping softly on the bed and curling up beside her.

"Oh, Hana-san you're awake," the soft soothing voice of a nurse turned her attention. Hana nodded weakly.

"Stay in bed," the nurse smiled. "Have some rest."

She exited quickly, and the room filled with silence. Hana closed her eyes, one hand on the scruff of Jiro's neck.

What had happened after she had lost consciousness?

* * *

Okamisora Seiko growled impatiently in the waiting room. He had visited for the past 3 days, and Hana had not awakened once. He had refused an S-ranked mission, and he stayed for hours on end, watching her. They had told her she lost blood, a lot of blood, and he had donated some of his own. He had mentally berated himself for not protecting her although he knew that _he_ was back. 

_Uchiha._

His eyes narrowed angrily, and he glared into space. The damn Uchiha had killed his younger brother, and had corrupted his love. The Uchiha had ruined the Okamisora's life, and Seiko vowed he would avenge them, he would avenge Konoha.

His wolf growled to warn him someone was coming, but Seiko ignored the animal.

"Okamisora-sama..." a soft voice said.

Seiko turned to glare at a nurse, his broodings interrupted.

Nervous, the nurse stuttered before quickly excusing herself.

"Hana-sama has just awoken."

* * *

The door swung open and Hana turned her head to see Seiko gazing at her, shock and relief on his face. 

Her lips curved slightly.

"Hana..." he stepped closer.

The Haimaru Sankyodai stood, jumping off the bed to allow the two humans to meet.

"Hey..."

Seiko pulled a chair towards the bed, sitting down.

"Can't hold you, can I?"

Hana shook her head, "Still hurts."

The ANBU sighed, settled for stroking her matted hair.

Hana turned her head away, "Don't look at me, I look all gross and wounded."

Seiko grinned, leaning towards his fiancée.

"You look beautiful as always."

Hana blushed, lifting her hand slowly to cup his face.

"You're just saying that cuz I was stabbed."

"That hurts, Hana-chan," Seiko kissed her softly. "That hurts right here."

He guided her hand gently towards his heart. Hana chuckled, pulling her hand away.

She scooted towards the far side of the bed, allowing Seiko to join her. He wrapped his arms around her waist, breathing in her scent. She smelled like rubbing alcohol and dried blood, but it didn't matter. She was safe, and he wouldn't let her go.

* * *

"Seiko?" 

He grunted in reply.

"You're too close."

The ANBU ignored her protest, cuddling towards her like a puppy.

"Seiko!"

"Hn..."

"Get off!" Hana pushed him off the tiny bed and he landed on the floor with a loud thump. She grinned, wincing as she sat up. She looked down as Seiko sat up, rubbing his head.

"That's what you get," she stuck her tongue out playfully.

Seiko smiled, before something beeped. He growled and Hana's smile lowered slightly. Seiko glanced at her, and pulled out his beeper. He stood up, his posture straight and rigid.

"You should go..." Hana murmured softly, "I'm fine."

The beeping stopped, and Seiko sat down on the bed.

"Who said I'm going anywhere?" he grinned slyly.

Hana looked up, a sad smile on her lips.

"Seiko... the ANBU."

"That doesn't matter," he snapped gruffly, shocking her. He finished; his tone quieter and calmer, "You're more important."

Her heart skipped a beat and she blushed. He kissed her softly, and that was all she needed at the moment.

* * *

"I won't ever leave you again," he whispered. He lifted her hand and she gasped, pulling her hand away. 

Her ring! The engagement ring was gone. The precious gem that he had given her disappeared. Her eyes watered as Seiko realized the loss of the ring.

He was silent, frozen as he gazed at her. Silence passed between them before Seiko saw a glisten down her cheek.

"Hana?" his voice was laced with worry.

"I'm... sorry... it must..."

Before she could continue, his arms enveloped her.

"It doesn't matter; all that does is that you're alive," he soothed.

"No... Seiko it does."

"Hana, stop worrying, just get better."

She shook her head, "I'm sorry..."

They both were quiet, as Hana replayed the other night, before suspicions arose. What if _he_ took it?

"It's not your fault," Seiko broke the silence, his words firm. "Don't blame yourself."

His arms were warm and comfortable, and she felt safety and comfort in them. She closed her eyes, the wound hurting less.

"I love you Seiko."

She could feel his heartbeat quicken and his grip around her tightened.

"I love you Hana."

* * *

**A/N: **Like? Don't like? Sorry it's so short... but I'll get the next one out in a jiffy! 


	14. Idea

**A/N:** Hey... hope you like. Can't get enough ItaHana fluff so more shall come. I know, its not really fluffy, cuz it's like all murderous and stuff, but hey, you really expect Itachi to have chibi eyes and say words of commitment and love? I think not. Well, this is where the story begins to get a move and start to operate.  
**Disclaimer: **I hate these things.

* * *

_I saw you with him today.  
The boy who took my place.  
You seemed so much happier with me.  
But maybe that's just the way I want it to be.  
But it's just another one of those days  
The way you made it all feel so right  
The way you fit into my arms at night  
I'll remember that feeling for the rest of my life  
But it's just another one of those days  
I can't help but feel a little upset  
About the things you and I never had  
I had the world, but instead threw it all away.  
Now, it's just another one of those days.  
So, tell me what happens next?  
It's out of my hands, I guess.  
I just don't know what to believe.  
Why don't you tell me to believe?  
Why did you let me leave?  
It's not the way it's gotta be.  
What's wrong with me?  
Why don't you tell me to believe?  
Why did you let me leave?  
Is that the way this has to be?_

_-My Cinderella Story-

* * *

_

**Chapter 14: Idea**

He had arrived in the afternoon, the noon sun high in the trees. Konoha was at a weak point, not thinking he would return so quickly. Veiled only in thin genjutsu, he heard a laugh, a laugh so familiar it resounded through his mind and his chest.

He turned towards the hospital.

"That tickles!"

Her laughter filled the still air as he gazed through the window.

She was sprawled on the small hospital bed, giggling as a man was beside her, holding her tightly and breathing softly on her bare neck. He kissed the bandage in which blood had once oozed.

He watched the man pull her closer to him, kiss her lips and made her smile. He was a rather handsome man, dark brown hair pulled back in a ponytail and long bangs that framed his face much like his own, replacing his crimson red eyes with olive green. He guessed an Okamisora, a wolf was by his side he resembled much like Kyoshi, but not confirmed because the man wore black gloves of the ANBU uniform.

He watched her smile. It seemed forced, but that may be a figment of his imagination. He remembered those days back when he was the ANBU captain, back when she had thrown her head back and laugh at anything. She seemed much happier then, careless and free. But that was what the Mangekyou Sharingan did to anyone that felt its power. It would suck their soul away.

He pushed the thoughts away. This life was better. He could keep achieving more; he no longer was restrained at such an early age. At thirteen, living just a little more than a decade, he had achieved the highest ranking he could in all of Konoha, and he could not get higher. His power was held back, feared in some cases. Now he had new set goals, capture the Tailed Beasts, forces more powerful than him. He had chosen the Kyuubi himself, the strongest of all, the one desired the most. It was a goal he would pass, and then he would kill the rest before moving higher, if there was.

Watching the two lovers was not a different scheduled day. It was another, goal-oriented agenda, a way to gain more power.

A small smirk rose on the intruder's face, as he knew that this man would never taste the metallic yet sweet taste of her blood. He would never savor what the criminal outside the very window had.

His mind flashed to the night before, the taste no longer lingered, but easily attainable. He closed his eyes, remembering the feeling of her body in his arms and the way her blood filled the appetite before her scream had crashed the walls before the demon.

He remembered the dream of the night before. The Akatsuki member rarely dreamed, dreams were figments of hope and of love, two weaknesses he could not afford. Before his closed eyes the dream played before him.

It was strewn in billows of black and skies of red. He had cast another spell, he had used the Mangekyou, but this time, he was part of the doujutsu. He made a world where realities united, his and hers, where there was no such thing as pain and death, where there was no barriers between them. He had made a world where she cried tears, not of grief, and weaved a whole lifetime that was saved just for them. He had created a life that was filled with meaningless fragilities, but the smiles traced in black and red did not leave the corners of his mind.

* * *

When he had opened his eyes, the sun had set against the horizon. Dusk had fallen quickly and the Okamisora was forced to leave. Their murmurs of farewell were tender and loving. The darkness watched; his mask impassive as their lips parted after a long moment and the door shut.

His fist clenched, hidden from the peaceful village as he had watched all afternoon, the kisses and touches from the lovers, and the smile he had longed to see had relapsed many times he could not count, until it was left on almost permanently, disappearing only once at the loss of the ring.

He realized as soon as the door shut that the man that held her was the man that had given her the ring, the gem the intruder had clutched in his hand for the hours he had spied, its contours memorized simply by touch.

He knew that this man would fulfill Hana and keep her happy; the look in his eyes was pure love, and thus, weakness.

The man could make Hana laugh, and he could make her cry. And the Uchiha wished he had that power over the Inuzuka who never trembled in the face of death, who never cried because she was scared he would kill her. He had realized too late the Sharingan spinning in his eyes and the feeling of jealousy come over him.

Jealousy blinded a ninja with emotions, making him weak. And Itachi could not afford to be weak.

He left without a sound, the night as his invisibility.

As he became as unseen as the wind, leaving the Fire Country, a small idea began to develop. He had seen the relief in the man's eyes when he found her alive, and the pain when the ring was lost. The man had held Hana close to his heart, and thus, the man's emotion had been let loose simply by what the Inuzuka managed to do.

If he used that weakness as a trigger to return his power to its former glory, it would be much simpler than his initials plans.

At the end, he would effectively kill her, and that would awaken the demon and make him rise up to ultimate power. He would allow her in and then shut the door behind her. After she had died and grief overcame him, he would attain the power he yearned for.

As the old saying goes, a man must first fall before he can rise again.

* * *

**A/N: **Hoped you like! Confuzzling much? -evil laugh-


	15. Mission

**A/N: **Hope you like! Stupid FF won't let me sign in, so that's why it's so late!  
**Disclaimer: **Don't own.

* * *

**Chapter 15: Mission**

Inuzuka Hana was too risky. She was part of his past, and thus already too close. He knew that to let her become to close, he may not want to let go.

He passed by Konoha, his eyes landing on a pink-haired girl.

He had recognized her as the Kyuubi's love interest, which intrigued him. The girl seemed easily manipulated, weak and hence, nothing like Hana. She had apple green eyes, cherry blossom hair and an innocent smile, but a practiced medic-nin by the pouch around her waist. The look in her eyes made her a romantic, dreaming of a fantasy called love.

He had cornered her alone, and she had mistaken him for Sasuke. It was a simple task, and it would be a convenient loss on his part and the Kyuubi's.

* * *

"Haruno Sakura disappeared," she repeated.

"Tsunade-sama said she wouldn't be going after Sasuke again, she didn't bring anything," the brown haired boy looked grave.

"How's Naruto-san fairing?"

"Depressed. Both his teammates are gone."

Hana gazed out the window, her hand buried in the scruff of one of her dogs. She sighed softly.

"Any clues?"

"Most likely kidnapped. The last place anyone saw her was at Ichiraku Ramen. Naruto said she was walking home before she disappeared. The last thing found was a piece of unidentifiable black fabric and Sakura's weapon pack. It's been a few days. They're planning on sending out a tracking team to find her."

Hana glanced at her brother, an eyebrow raised.

"You're planning to go with them," she stated.

"Sakura-san's part of the Rookie Nine," he replied, before adding softer and more pained, "Hinata-chan's really worried. I hate to see her cry."

Hana nodded, before standing.

"Where are you going?" Kiba asked from his seat by the fire.

"To talk to the Hokage."

* * *

"You think Uchiha Itachi kidnapped her?" Tsunade's formal tone was intense and almost dangerous.

Hana's gaze did not falter. "Do you have the fabric?"

"It's being examined now."

"May I see it?"

Tsunade stared at the Tokubetsu Jonin. Suddenly she recognized the girl to be the Inuzuka that survived the massacre so long ago. Only ANBU and her family knew of such a time, as the girl had the guts to hide it and move on. Inuzuka Hana was an Inuzuka, and had the genes and the strength of her clan. She also knew of Uchiha Itachi, and managed to survive, making her far more emotionally stronger than most ninja in Konoha. But Tsunade doubted the girl's stability, even if she looked quite firm. They said she went into traumatized grief after they found her.

Still, the Hokage pulled out the plastic bag where the black fabric was kept. She handed it to the Jonin. Hana pulled it carefully out of the bag, handling it gently as she brought it to her nose. The Hokage watched as Hana closed her eyes and breathed in its scent.

When she opened her eyes, her suspicions were confirmed. The fabric belonged to the Uchiha.

The Jonin placed it into the bag, and handed it back.

"Let me go find her alone."

Tsunade folded her hands, scrutinizing the Jonin as the brown-haired Inuzuka stood erect.

"Explain your motive."

"Uchiha Itachi killed my best friend. Give me the right to at least bring back the girl."

After a moment, Tsunade nodded, "Very well. You will go your own way, and I will send a tracking team another."

"Thank you," Hana bowed, before exiting.

The Hokage knew that this chance she was laying on this girl's shoulders was slim to nothing for success. But she saw the look in her eyes.

Inuzuka Hana had been in love with Itachi, no matter how much she denies it.

* * *

She packed little, as the three dogs whimpered by her side. She soothed them softly.

They dipped their heads, following their master out of sheer loyalty. The soft breeze in the room changed course, allowing her to smell him. His scent was worried and frantic, and soon his arms were around her waist from behind.

He held her for a moment, his breath ghosting over her skin.

She broke the silence with a soft greeting.

"You're not going," he growled. Hana was silent, bringing a hand up to his arms.

"I have to..."

"No you don't," he turned her around to look at her.

"Seiko, you're being unreasonable."

"I'm being unreasonable?" his voice raised as Hana gazed into dark angry eyes. "You're about to get yourself killed!"

Slowly, the Inuzuka raised her hand to cup his cheek, trying to soothe him with that act. "I'll be fine, I'll bring her back."

"I...I don't want to lose you," he confessed softly.

Hana smiled, "I'm not going to get hurt."

It was an utter lie, but she didn't care. If she had to die, she might as well put some damage on the man who ruined her life. She might as well try to save another from him.

"I almost lost you last time... it's too soon..." he murmured, pulling her closer.

She didn't answer, allowing him to hold her one more time before gods know when she'll be back.

"You're on the tracking team right?" Hana asked tentatively.

Seiko nodded.

"Protect Kiba for me."

The ANBU chuckled softly, "Still acting like his older sister, even though he is stronger than even you?"

Hana nodded, brushing her lips against his, "Someone has to do it."

Before Seiko could kiss her more, Hana put distance between them, their hands threaded together before Hana walked backwards, leaving him.

* * *

They dressed her in ANBU gear, the arm guards and shin guards miraculously not clanking against each other. The uniform was quick to move in, even with the guards strapped on. They pulled a black cloak over her, hiding her face with a mask of a dog. They also provided uniforms for her dogs, who would travel in human form so it would look like a team of ANBU and not just a veterinarian and her three dogs.

Tsunade-sama herself came and wished her luck. The Godaime handed the Jonin truth pills, soldier pills, and a bag full of... clothes?

"You might need to go undercover and disguise yourself. Makeup and clothes are all in here."

Hana nodded gravely, desperately hoping she did not need to go "undercover".

Amber eyes gazed into dark ones.

"Good luck, Inuzuka Hana."

* * *

**A/N: **Hope you liked. Sorry it was so long to update. Busy. 


	16. Waterfall

**A/N: **Enjoy.  
**Disclaimer: **Don't own. Hobby, not job.

* * *

**Chapter 16: Waterfall**

Four shadows passed through the empty forest, leaving only the rustle of the leaves in their wake.

Inuzuka Hana panted, stopping to catch her breath. Her three companions, hidden by three identical masks, were by her side, panting just as much.

"They're not here," she murmured, more to herself than her companions. She sighed, fumbling through her pack before finding exactly what she was looking for.

She pulled out the crimson ribbon, her breath caught in her throat. No matter how many times she looked at the ribbon, over the course of about three months, it still brought waves of nostalgia and memories flooding through the recesses of her mind. She went through it again to save the life of an innocent girl. Her food and water supply was running low, and her muscles ached from the constant searching.

She breathed in the scent, the faint and getting fainter smell of Uchiha Itachi wafting into her nose, before holding it out to her three companions. She shut her eyes tight to fight off the dizziness but flashes of her memory replayed in her mind. She banished the thoughts by throwing her eyes wide and continuing on.

Of course, she didn't know where he was, or anywhere close to the headquarters, but logic and reasoning helped bring about choices. Uchiha Itachi would not bring Sakura to the Akatsuki headquarters, if she was tracked then she would lead the way to a possible ambush. Therefore, he had to bring her somewhere not too close to the headquarters that it could be found if he was, nor too far in case important information must reach him. Sakura did not bring anything with her, so Itachi had to be someplace nearby a small town or village, to get supplies if they did not live in Akatsuki. They most likely were not in Fire Country, the risk of the ANBU too great. Besides, she spent a whole month and a half looking through the vast forests of the Fire Country.

Hana expected Itachi to be hiding somewhere in the areas bordering the Fire Country, since Sakura would not continue any farther if she was a capable kunoichi.

Three months from her departure from Konoha, Inuzuka Hana had left the border of the Fire Country after making a very thorough search and was in the Waterfall Country. Itachi could be anywhere, in Rice Field Country, Grass Country, Rain Country, or even as far as the Wind Country. An acquaintance at Suna had searched Wind Country, while she had already looked through both Grass and Rain country, not a sliver of the familiar scent. She sighed, the scent not picking up anywhere.

She cursed to herself quickly, closing her eyes and resting upon the grass for a moment. She stretched her aching limbs, pulling off the guards for a moment to allow herself to stretch.

* * *

Soon, Hana was back on the road, running through the trees, breathing in the scents of air and leaves, and not picking up anything out of the ordinary, more specifically, Uchiha Itachi and Haruno Sakura.

Hana's ears pricked up as she heard the sound of rushing water. She smiled behind her mask, heading towards the waterfall.

The sight of cascading rivers that ended in a rush of loud flurries and water and humid air soothed her muscles, making her sigh. She was alone with her ash gray dogs, that was sure, and no one would show up in such a deserted area.

She unclasped the armor across her shins, arms, and chest, letting it fall to the floor with a clang. The sun was setting behind the waterfall, but she didn't mind. Wriggling out of her clothes, she stepped in half nude into the water, shivering contently at the freezing liquid surrounding her. Her three companions were released from their human form, shaking off the armor and jumping into the water with a splash.

She didn't care if a pedestrian passed by. She could easily silence any villager if they would reveal her identity. And for ninjas, there were not many strong ones in the Waterfall Country.

No one was around, and she wasn't worried. The cold water alleviated her sore muscles from three and a half days of searching, and her clothes were a safe distance off and easily attainable. She let out a well-needed sigh, massaging a tight spot on her back.

Of course, Inuzuka Hana was too tired to think of the dangers of being so close to the waterfall. The humid air muffled all scents, making her only breathe in the crisp rushing water, and the loud crash of the fall stifled any sounds and rustling. But she didn't mind, Uchiha Itachi would never be anywhere close to where she was, and the chances were slim that he would find her in this hunt.

But chances are chances, no matter how slim, and someone did find her bathing in the water.

* * *

A loud rustle of leaves pulled her out of her daze, and her senses went on high alert.

_Oh shit._

The Jonin quieted, cursing herself for letting herself slip, hating how she showed obvious weakness. She could not sense the intruder, and her heart sped up. Taking a gulp of air, she ducked underwater towards her clothes. She jumped out, scrambling into her clothes and dodged a single kunai. Her companions transformed back into humans, quickly putting on their uniforms and hiding their indistinguable faces behind masks. Throwing on the armor, and pulling the mask over her face, she jumped into the trees, sending chakra to her nose to smell him out.

But it was not him. It was not Uchiha Itachi.

The Inuzuka threw a precise kunai, running through the large branch, the Beast Mimicry already activated as she swiped at the intruder. A gasp passed her ear as Hana stopped to find pink hair falling through the leaves.

The girl dropped to the ground steadily, her Konohagakure headband falling off her head, but she paid no heed as she ran through the forest. Hana dropped to the ground gracefully, picking up the headband in one swipe and taking a quick inhale before running after her target.

In a game of tracking, she was the clear winner.

* * *

Haruno Sakura gasped, her heart thumping in her ears. The ANBU had finally found her.

No, she wasn't ready to go back, she couldn't go back. Not now, not now. She'll go back to him, he'll kill them. He'll kill them all and she'll be safe and she wouldn't go back. It panged in her heart that the ANBU must die, but she couldn't leave. Maybe they'll escape and then send more, but by that time, they would be long gone. But she could not leave. Not when she was so close.

A kunai flashed by her, nipping the skin off her bare arm. Wincing from the stinging pain, she kept running. He was nearby, if she just pushed a little harder...

* * *

Inuzuka Hana did not think as she followed the girl. The pink hair disappeared before her eyes, but not for long. Her scent, now fresh in her mind and easily traced by the wound she inflicted could easily be found. Mere genjutsu could not stop her from capturing that stupid girl and dragging her home.

The Inuzuka didn't know _why_ the formidable medical nin was running away from her chance at safety, but it must not be good. Itachi must have done something to her, manipulated her mind, because the girl was not fake, that was the real Haruno Sakura. And Hana did not want to think of what exactly he put her through.

The pink hair ran into a clearing, and the older girl smirked. She could handle a little one-on-one with the medical ninja. If Inuzuka Hana had to beat up the idiotic girl, fine, be it. She _will_ bring her back, half dead if she must.

* * *

Pink hair brushed back as apple green eyes glared back at an impassive face. Rushing water was behind her as she stepped onto the river. Chakra control was her strong point, and she could at least hold off the ANBU.

"Go back to Konoha!" she shouted, tears welling in her eyes. Why couldn't they understand?

The four ANBU did not speak, running towards her, their footsteps dripping on the water. Sakura focused chakra to her fist, ready to smash that porcelain mask open. The leader dodged the swift attack, a katana once strapped on his back now in his hands. He lunged, as Sakura dodged the sword, trying to get closer to grab the hilt and switch directions.

After a moment, the sword was punched through the air, landing deep in the waterfall. The ANBU turned his head, forming familiar hand seals.

Sakura's eyes widened, as it all dawned on her. How the ANBU could track her so easily, to stay on her path. Everything was clear, the ANBU had enlisted certain people.

"Kiba…" she murmured, her voice gone.

Tsunade was smart, she had made one of the Rookie Nine to go after her. Akamaru must have transformed into a human to make it look like a team. One of them most be Hinata, so that when Kiba's scent failed, her eyes would find her and any traps. And the other must be Shino, his kekkai genkai a beneficial aspect to track her. Tsunade had sent a specially designed tracking team, Team 10 and part of the Rookie Nine, to connect to her past.

But chakra pumped through Kiba's veins, as claws sprouted and ripped apart fabric of his gloves.

She ran off the water, the water could be used against her in Hinata's new jutsu, not that Sakura thought she would use it against her.

No, she couldn't fight them. Not anyone part of the Rookie Nine. But she was close…

She spun around, a well aimed fist connecting to a jaw of the leader, Kiba.

"I'm sorry Kiba," she murmured, so only he would hear.

The head snapped back after a rough twist, blood trickling from behind the mask, as suddenly Kiba's hand was around her neck, pushing her against the tree. Her arms were slammed together held by his other hand, and the grip was tight.

"Kiba…" she murmured his name once more.

The ANBU leaned closer and finally spoke. The voice was labored, rough, but feminine and unfamiliar.

"Not quite."

* * *

**A/N: **Please review! 


	17. Betrayal

**A/N: **I haven't updated in a while. School gets to me quite faster than anything else.  
**Disclaimer: **Don't own Naruto.

* * *

_If I smile and don't believe  
Soon I know I'll wake from this dream  
Don't try to fix me, I'm not broken  
Hello I'm the lie living for you so you can hide  
Don't cry  
Suddenly I know I'm not sleeping  
Hello I'm still here  
All that's left of yesterday_

_Hello

* * *

_

**Chapter 17: Betrayal**

Haruno Sakura woke up to birds singing high up in the trees, the sun hitting her eyes, and soft blankets wrapped around her. She sat up, rubbing at her eyes tiredly, before the events of the day before forced her to almost jump up.

Her eyes met dark ones, feral, but deep and mysteriously alluring. She had completely mistaken the ANBU for Kiba, but the fangs tattooed across her cheeks signaled her as one of the dog clan. Gods, she was pathetic, lamely thinking if she recognized the Inuzuka clan technique that it belonged to Kiba. The woman was tall and well-endowed, but her silky brown hair tied back in a low ponytail, tied with a crimson ribbon, kept her image simplistic yet uncharacteristically pretty. She was shuffling the dying fire with a stick, three ash gray dogs around her legs.

"You're awake," she stated, her eyes watching the medical-nin steadily.

"Where am I?" Sakura stuttered.

"On the way back to Konoha. You refuse, I'll knock you out and carry you back. Try to run, and I'll hunt you down."

Sakura nodded shakily. She didn't doubt that the woman would do those things she had described in painstakingly pointed details.

Silence filled the air, as the older woman poked at the fire.

* * *

"You must be hungry," the woman commented, her voice less dangerous. Sakura shrugged, trying not to tremble. The woman handed her some steamed fish. "Eat."

"Who... who are you?" Sakura managed to ask, knowing by the older woman's movements and carelessness about her identity too unsettling to be a proper ANBU.

"Inuzuka Hana."

At the younger girl's silence, she offered to the night air.

"Kiba's older sister if you will. Konoha vet."

Sakura nodded, nibbling meekly at the fish. She hated the food, but with a dangerous woman like Inuzuka Hana, she would obey.

The older woman crossed her long strong legs, chewing on a piece of jerky, before she analyzed the medical-nin.

"You love him, don't you," it was more of a statement than a question, and Sakura found herself instantly blushing.

"I..."

Suddenly, the woman's description was suddenly clear. She had seen her before, in a forbidden scroll.

She was part of Itachi's past.

"You..."

Hana glanced at her casually, uncrossing her legs and then crossing them again.

"Yeah," she answered before Sakura could finish. "I've known Itachi for a while."

Itachi had mentioned her once, once in a nonexistent conversation.

* * *

"_Itachi-kun..." Sakura smiled shyly, looking up under long lashes at the tall boy._

_He didn't answer, not even looking at her, but he was always like that._

"_Were you ever interested with someone...like before me?"_

_The man lifted his head, crimson eyes gazing almost _dazed _as if he was remembering the past._

"_A dangerous woman... of crimson, someone I could have killed a long time ago..." he answered softly, and Sakura was puzzled with the cryptic response. And the medical nin was dangerously jealous, of this dangerous woman that made the impassive boy respond to such a question. A woman that interested him, but also a woman he wanted to kill._

_She stood up, moving towards him. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she pulled him closer._

"_So who do you like better? Me or her?"_

_He didn't answer, and she didn't expect him to answer, only to lean down and kiss her.

* * *

_

Sakura realized that this woman may be who Itachi spoke of, and with a biased eye, she concluded that although she was exotic, she was not pretty enough to catch his interest. Itachi was quite a man, and his standards were high. She didn't understand how he even liked _her_.

Suddenly Hana jumped up, and goosebumps ran up Sakura's arms. Her heart thudded, and they both simultaneously understood that he had finally found them.

Then Sakura bolted.

* * *

Hana cursed under her breath as the pink haired girl began to run, leaving her. Her analytical mind realized that Sakura was running, fleeing, letting Itachi find her then returning to him. She was blind, hypnotized by his essence to be his loyal puppet, not understanding that Uchiha Itachi was incapable of happiness much less provide her it, and was only using her. Quickly, she ordered her three dogs to follow her, keep the girl safe. They bounded through the forest, only for Hana to growl at her stupid decision soon, that the Uchiha was not chasing after the medical nin, but at her.

Frankly, she knew he cared about Sakura as much as he cared about a kunai. The moment it broke, the girl would be thrown away, like garbage.

She flew through hand seals, as chakra exploded through her veins, adrenaline pumping as fast as her racing heart. Eyes turned feral, claws sprouted from fingernails and fangs bit into her lower lip. Senses heightened and she picked him out instantly, throwing a kunai at the shadows.

It landed with a thunk on the bark of a tree, and she spun around, ducking a kunai aimed at her throat.

It was a slip. Suddenly, a wire appeared out of no where, wrapping around her wrist like a vice, cutting her circulation and threatening the layer of skin. Eyes widened as fire traveled through the string, towards her in blinding light.

* * *

Sakura huffed, cornering herself. She spun around, looking for an opening, only to find them in the boughs of the trees. Hopping up, she jumped from tree to tree, only to be stopped by a cloak of darkness and red.

"Itachi!" she smiled happily, now he had finally found her.

Red eyes gazed down as she ran towards him, wrapping her arms around him.

"I-I thought they would take me back!"

Suddenly, the arms gripped back, grabbing her. She let out a surprised squeal, as he disappeared from her arms, only to be caught by chakra wire by three ash gray dogs. Sakura let out a scream, tears welling behind her eyes. They wrapped her around the base of a tree, before poofing back into identical human counterparts.

"Let me go!" she shrieked. The dogs lifted their heads, sniffing the air, before pulling out identical swords.

"The Uchiha is going after Hana," one of them murmured.

"Bastard," another hissed.

"We should go help," the last one suggested.

"Hana told us to watch her," the first one reasoned, glaring at the medical nin.

"Hana might be dying now!" the second barked.

"The Uchiha could make a Kage Bunshin and come here," the first replied, shutting the other two up.

As the dogs bickered, Sakura pulled off the wire around her, before the dogs spun around as she tried to make her escape.

Pouring chakra to her hands and feet, she slammed a kick into one of the dogs, who crashed against his brother to a tree. The last growled, glaring at the girl. She aimed a chakra-enhanced punch at it, but it dodged. Her eyes widened. The dog in human form had the reflexes of any shinobi, as it curled flexibly, grabbing her wrist.

Her teeth clenched, as the other two, stood. Throwing another punch, and performing genjutsu, she ran.

* * *

Her breath came out in labored exhales, as she tore off the burnt sleeves off her uniform. Quickly running a glowing green hand over it, she managed to heal a few burns.

"Come out, coward," she growled, wiping at the blood from her temple.

Before she could predict his whereabouts, more wire surrounded her, pinning her to a tree. A gasp left her mouth, and a shadow touched down.

He gazed up, but her eyes met oynx. Her feral deep ones narrowed, taking the lack of his doujutsu as an insult. He was being easy on her; he would not kill her, but torment her.

"Where is she?" he muttered.

"You know perfectly well where she is," Hana hissed, struggling against the wires.

He walked towards her, his presence causing shivers to tremble across her skin. His lips were cold and unmoving, as she suddenly stiffened. Cool fingers wrapped around her shoulder, pulling her closer to him and harder against the wires.

There was a scream, and his lips left hers as the two stared at the horror struck Haruno Sakura. Tears welled in her eyes, as the wire disappeared from Hana's shoulders.

Itachi moved off the Inuzuka, and was instantly in front of the younger girl.

"I have no further use for you," he murmured as Sakura dropped to her knees, trembling.

* * *

**A/N: **This was a hard chapter. And school has overwhelmed me, so that is why its really _really_ late. Sorry ; 


	18. Return

**A/N: **Phew... next part. Sorry about all this wait, but I, and I hate to say this, am getting very aggravated with this story. Sorry. So, in my attempt to hurry and finish it up, the end will be Chapter 20. I know, it makes me a crap writer, etc, but I want to start something new, and I want to hurry and finish this up.  
**Disclaimer: **Don't own.

* * *

_No lost words, whisper slowly, to me.  
Still can't find what keeps me here. (Ohh)  
When all this time I've been so hollow, inside,  
(I know your still there).  
__Watching me,  
Wanting me,  
I can feel you pull me down.  
Fearing you,  
Loving you,  
I won't let you pull me down  
__Haunting you, I can smell you - alive  
Your heart pounding in my head._

_Haunted__

* * *

_

**Chapter 18: Return**

He hated her.

He hated her for coming back into his life, he hated the way she did not even let him see the smile. He reviled the way her blood trickled down her body, making her look weak a pitible.

He loathed the way she fought vainly for his own death, the way she flowed with the mainstream and hated him like everyone else and the way she didn't. He detested the way she could not understand that he had returned to the god damn Konoha because he had known that the Kyuubi no longer resided there, but he needed to see those eyes, the fresh blood haunting him everywhere he turned. He hated the way he tried to replace her, and when it seemed like it might work, she had come and destroyed any chance of it.

He hated her, and he wanted her dead. He craved to see lifeless eyes, a limp body and pools of crimson that no healer could repair. He wanted to see her gone, out of his life, destroyed, so he did not have to be weak, so he did not have to return to Konoha unnecessarily - just to see her.

But he could not kill her. And he knew that she could kill herself if she kept trying, but he didn't let her. All he could do was cause her pain, to hunt her down and trap her, before leaving her. All he could do was cast genjutsus and haunt her, too see her struggle.

If he could not be happy with or without her, she could not be happy.

* * *

Hana glared at the man, as he towered over the trembling girl, murmuring unnecessary words. 

"You leave her alone," she growled, running at him again. She lunged towards him, ready to plunge her claws towards his stomach, only for him to catch it and throw her aside. He gave one last look at her, slumped against a tree, before disappearing in a smoke of black.

Hana sighed relieved, stretching her sore back. She didn't care where he went; she didn't care why he left. The mere reason he left without killing them was good enough. Three dogs bounded through the forest, giving up the human form for something more comfortable. They brushed past Hana affectionately, and Hana walked over to Sakura, still huddled in a corner. Awkwardly, she put a hand on the younger girl's shoulder.

"We're going home."

* * *

The two return home more or less in one shape. They were an odd pair, Hana, tall, dark and dangerous, while Sakura was pale, cute, and trembling. Sakura still was unstable, facing the cruelest breakdown she experienced. She attempted to be strong, Hana could give her that, but the Inuzuka knew that Sakura truly loved him, a bitter mistake. 

"We're almost there," Hana grunted, sniffing the night air.

"Hana-sama..." Sakura murmured meekly. "Arigatou... for saving me."

Hana glanced over, before running a hand through her hair, "Don't do it again."

Sakura nodded, eyes lowering in shame. She shivered in the night wind, teeth chattering and tired from their relentless walk. Hana sighed, pulling off her cloak and dropping it around the younger girl's shoulders.

"Naruto really misses you," the Inuzuka mused.

Sakura didn't answer, and Hana continued. "The boy really loves you; it took ANBU and the Hokage to keep him from running after you. He was ready to beat the hell out of Itachi or die."

"Naruto's like that," Sakura whispered, smiling softly as she remembered the blond Kyuubi.

"And you left him for an enemy."

Sakura's smile dropped, before she replied in a soft voice, "I know... I'm such a... horrible..."

"Love is blind," Hana gazed up in the sky, hands behind her head. "You weren't in love with Itachi, you wanted to be because you didn't want to love Naruto."

"I do!" Sakura protested. "I do love Naru-"

"Then why didn't you escape?"

Sakura was silent, most likely wording an explanation, yet failing. "Because... Itachi weaved me... a perfect..."

Hana smiled sadly, "I know. Let's take a rest."

* * *

Konoha was more or less ecstatic with them; even Tsunade thought they were killed after such a long time. A celebration was thrown at Naruto's place, who did not let Sakura out of his sight. Sakura did not tell him about Itachi, and Naruto didn't ask. She knew her actions were shameful, embarrassing and traitorous, but Inuzuka Hana wasn't going to say anything, so neither would she. Almost every ninja in Konoha showed up, the Inuzuka veterinarian the main honor, as Tsunade stood to praise and congratulate the Tokubetsu Jonin. 

Hana smiled and took it modestly, excusing her bravery as Itachi just disappeared out of sight. He did not fight them, luckily, and thus they were still alive. Still, no one paid attention to her excuse, raising the cups of sake to toast her.

That night, Naruto proposed to Haruno Sakura. She accepted in tears.

* * *

"Hana..." 

His voice sent chills down her spine, and she turned to be enveloped in Seiko's arms. They stood together in silent embrace for a moment, before Hana murmured, "I missed you."

"Never... leave me again," he replied, his breath labored. Hana smiled, "I won't."

He gazed at her, dark eyes staring into her own. She took his hand, whispering, "Let's go out."

They spent the rest of the day walking around Konoha on the moonless night, occasionally kissing under a dark oak tree or on a barren field of grass, surrounded by three ash gray dogs and one midnight blue wolf. Seiko never let her out of his sight, seemingly scared she would disappear in thin air.

"Aishiteru," Seiko murmured, his breath tickling her ear. "Marry me."

Hana blushed faintly, looking away. They were silent, and Seiko sighed, getting the message. His hand squeezed, hers, before he stood, heartbroken.

"Okay," Hana finally whispered, looking up towards Seiko. He softened is stiff composure, before lifting her to her feet and leaning in to kiss her.

Hana closed her eyes. She was finally ready, ready to marry, ready to give up on the nightmare of her past. She had someone better, someone who loved her back, someone she respected for his loyalty. She was ready to forget Itachi.

* * *

**A/N:** As I said, I'm really rushing this story to the end. I already wrote the ending (it started first as a one-shot before I incorporated it into the story) and it will be chapter 20. I already have other ideas for chaptered stories, but I won't start them until this one is done. Thanks for reading and sorry for the wait! 


	19. Vision

**A/N:** Thank you so much for reading! Sadly the next part is the end. I would like to thank everyone reading this story, everyone who's been with me since The Distant Cry of the Wolf all the way to now, and everyone who's jumped on in with us at Crimson Ribbons.  
**Disclaimer: **You all know it all.  
**Lyrics: **I fondly thank lilly1542 for suggesting these lyrics, since I too love this song! -huggles-

* * *

_Give me a reason to end this discussion,  
To break with tradition.  
To fold and divide.  
Cause I hate the ocean, theme parks and airplanes,  
Talking with strangers, waiting in line..  
I'm through with these pills that make me sit still.  
"Are you feeling fine?"  
Yes, I feel just fine.  
Tell me that you're alright,  
Yeah everything is alright.  
Oh please tell me that you're alright,  
Yeah everything is alright.  
I used to rely on self-medication,  
I guess I still do that from time to time.  
But I'm getting better at fighting the future,  
"Someday you'll be fine..."  
Yes, I'll be just fine.  
_Everything is Alright

* * *

**Chapter 19: Vision**

The first time he came was two months after her return to Konoha. She was happily engaged, not even the mention of his name crossed her thoughts in the last month. Her job at the veterinarian's office prospered; her help healing wounded people no longer necessary. Sure, she was coming home tired, but nursing a whelping dog was worth the sight of cradling new born pups. She was still the rough, run of the mill girl, hair tied back in a low ponytail, broken fingernails and three ash gray dogs. Occasionally, people asked about her wellbeing, how she survived the Uchiha Itachi, how she was feeling.

She would respond with a brisk, "Yes, I feel fine."

Her future looked fine, she was fine, Seiko was fine, her family was fine. There was nothing wrong, and everything seemed alright.

He came with the cover of the night, Seiko gone on a mission. She could smell him the breeze, forcing her eyes open. Her heart beat was erratic, as she sprang out of bed, pulling her Chunnin jacket around her and grabbing a kunai.

She at first thought it was paranoia, panic that she was just seeing things. Sighing, she returned her kunai into the holster on her desk, but instinct made her leave her jacket on. She crawled back into bed, closing her eyes to the window. She heard the creak of the floorboard, and instantly her arm shot out, a kunai flying in the direction of the intruder's heart.

Being an S-classed criminal, he caught it with ease, behind her trembling form before she could blink, the kunai positioned to cut her throat open.

"Too slow," he muttered in her ear, his breath causing shivers down her spine.

His brought the knife towards her throat, slashing. Hana disappeared in a puff of smoke, before a snicker filled the silent room.

"Too stupid," she growled behind him, stabbing the knife into the criminal's side. He dodged, as Hana's knife pierced fabric. Hana growled, the dodge forcing her unbalance and making her tumble to the floor. She could have caught herself, but the nightgown she wore prohibited movement.

She looked up, eyes widening not to see crimson. They were cavernous black, glaring down at her panting form. He stood by the door, Hana could already feel genjutsu placed on it, most likely a sound and scent barrier to keep her dogs away.

"Go ahead," she hissed. "Kill me."

He didn't answer, so she did instead.

She formed hand seals, the Beast Mimicry technique pumping adrenaline and chakra in her veins. She slashed, as her talons met metal. The close proximity forced the smell of blood and pain in her nose, the smell of loss and death. She turned slashing at another side, and his arm grasped both of hers, wrenching them painfully behind her back. She panted, wincing at how he tugged mercilessly and forcing her arms to twist in a way they shouldn't. She could feel him smirk, his cool fingers holding her wrists in place, another hand at her neck.

"What do you want?" she growled.

"For you to die."

"Then do it."

"But that would be too easy," he mused. Hana struggled in her binds, but he refused to let go. Tauntingly, he slid the knife across her neck, slitting a small amount of blood.

She let out a string of curses, before pulling an underhanded blow. Her foot kicked back, but he suddenly had her ankle, causing another unbalance. She fell against him, drowning in his scent.

"Let go," she hissed, her voice steadily losing its edge. He had done something, he had caused her to tire easily, he had caused her fatigue.

He didn't respond, fingers digging into her skin. She couldn't help herself. The smell was intoxicating, she was dying in his arms because of him, she was falling into slumber because of what he must have cast on him.

She struggled weakly once more, hopping on one foot. His foot knocked hers off, and she landed in his arms, her arms wrenching painfully back. She was losing herself, that she knew. How much, she didn't.

* * *

It was morning, and she found herself sprawled on her own bed, in her own room, in her own clothes. She sighed, murmuring to herself. "It was just a dream." 

One hand came up to run through her hair, but stopped in mid air. Wrapped tightly around her wrist was a ribbon. A silky crimson ribbon dangled in her face, the smell of blood and pain on it.

Moments flooded past, as she sat up. She looked down, the hem of her nightgown was tattered. Her eyes widened, as her heart stopped a beat.

It did happen. Last night, he did come, and she did lose. But what the hell was she still alive?

"Genjutsu," she muttered, standing up cautiously. She glanced around her room, nothing seemed out of place. But Itachi was a genius by all rights. He must have examined the room when she was cast unconscious. She opened the door, and lying on the couch were three sleeping dogs. They raised their heads, before tiredly dropping them again. Hana shut the door, before sinking to the ground. Her breathing was labored, her heart was galloping. What had happened yesterday?

Seiko stopped by later that day. Instantly, he could tell something was wrong with Hana, the way she was locked up in her room. The Haimaru Sankyodai were concerned, whimpering.

"Hana?" he banged against the door.

Slowly, Hana opened it. Seiko gazed at her for a moment, before she collapsed into his arms.

"Are you alright?" his tone was alarmed, concerned.

Hana nodded, clutching the fabric of his sleeve. Tears welled in her eyes, and Seiko held her tighter. She could smell the wind on his clothes, the blood of battle.

Silently, she thanked him, thanked him for being there for her, despite his sudden return.

* * *

It did not become a one-time thing. He came back a few weeks later, again when Seiko was not there. She was standing by the window, the wind chilling her bones. She sighed, hand outstretched, the crimson ribbon clutched in it. 

She let go, as it traveled in the wind. Sighing softly, she shut the window, pulling the curtains over it. Suddenly she stiffened, the scent filling her nose. She wasn't wearing a nightgown, but she wasn't going to win.

The night ended as it had before, as did the morning after.

Seiko didn't return in the morning. Hana allowed the comfort of her dogs instead, wrapping herself in their fur.

The scent of blood and pain did not seem to wash off, the smell of her blood running down her skin because of him could not leave her.

And Hana did nothing of it. She did not tell anyone of what was happening behind the closed doors. And time went on, and she was still alright.

* * *

**A/N:** The next chapter is the end. -sighs- I had a lot of time writing this, and now that I have almost finished, it feels like a weight lifted from my chest. Now, away with the corny clichés. If you have any ideas for a ItaHana **oneshot**, because I won't be doing an ItaHana story in a while, please tell me. Thanks, and please review! -hugs- 


	20. Phantom of the Night

**A/N: **This started as a side story, but I managed to work it in. Sorry if it seems a little... er... odd. I was insane when I wrote this!  
**Disclaimer: **Don't own, this is a hobby, not a job.

* * *

_But don't you believe them,  
Don't you drink their poison too.  
These are the scars that words have carved,  
on me.  
Hey love,  
That's the name we've long held back,  
From the core of truth.  
So don't turn away now,  
I am turning in revolution.  
These are the scars that silence carved,  
on me.  
Hey love  
I am a constant satellite  
Of your blazing sun.  
My love,  
I obey your law of gravity,  
This is the fate you've carved on me.  
-Gravity

* * *

_

**Chapter 20: Phantom of the Night**

Her fingers flickered over the blade, twirling it slightly in her hand. Slowly, she ran the blade across her slender finger, watching the blood seep from the trail. She smiled approvingly, tucking the blade under her pillow, the cut finger in her mouth. Lifting her head, dark animalistic eyes gazed at trails of water seeping down the windows, unable to slide in, but nevertheless trying. The pounding of the rain as it hit cement caused her to sigh irritably. Rain was never a good sign.

Being an Inuzuka, the sense of smell was the key characteristic of her life. It was not only a way to pinpoint targets; it was a way to identify emotions, personality, and memories. Smell was more important that sight or sound; looks aren't quite as one would appear, and sound could be altered. Scent, one's unmistakable odor is too unique to be altered quite so.

But rain drowns away scents; rain cleans and washes away old memories and aromas. At times, rain was useful. But not now, not today.

Carefully, she placed seals, stronger seals this time, against her windows, blocking entrance. She lifted herself from the floor, straightening the sleek black undershirt before heading out of her room. No need to change into a nightgown, it was too thin and prohibited maximum movement. The skin tight pants and shirt was easier, comfortable enough without the bulkiness of her flak jacket.

Her apartment was small, cozy, but frigid on the rainy day. She sealed the front door too, in time, glancing at the three sleeping dogs on her couch. They knew of something, they knew that their master was hiding something, but could never understand why she locked away that thing from them. They would not understand why she did this, and thus, could not be a part of her plan. She had drugged them again, the guilty feeling in her throat rising as the dogs slept soundly.

She shut the door quietly, sealing it too, before sighing. Lastly, she walked to her mirror, and hesitated, before picking up the crimson ribbon on the desk.

Wounding it around her neck, she tied the ribbon loose enough to let her breathe easily, but tight enough to hold against her neck, the ends brushing against her collarbone.

And as she stared at her reflection, she vowed once more.

"I will kill him this time."

* * *

She crawled into bed, trying to calm her shuddering shoulders and her trembling heart. She was not weak, not her. She had dealt with this time and time again. She would not break down, not anymore. 

There was a crash of thunder and the strike of lightening, and the seals were broken.

Her heart raced at the sudden arrival, she had not expected him so soon, but then again, she had not expected him at all.

He entered silent; the only evidence of his arrival was the smell against his cloak and the dripping of the droplets against the floor. The rain could not wash away the scent of death, the smell of pain and agony that he had caused.

Slowly, she slid a hand under her pillow, gripping the knife tightly, and huddling her body closer. The intruder did not move, watching her back towards him. There was the rustle of fabric, as the wet cloak dropped to the floor.

And she waited, by scent alone, for him to drop his barriers and to falter, ever so slightly. It came sooner than she had hoped, and she threw the kunai straight towards his heart.

* * *

He had caught it as he always did between his fingers, as she rose to her feet, panting. He did not look at her, as he examined the kunai blade he gripped in his palm. His blood seeped as he unraveled pale fingers. She was the only one in a long time that had ever seen his blood. The blade was sharp enough to protrude a good amount of blood, as he twirled the blade to its grip. 

"Not balanced enough," he murmured.

She growled deep in her throat. Why did she even bother? Why didn't she just move, run away instead of holding her place and letting him come time and time again?

Senbon flashed in the moon lit night, slashed angrily at him, almost as a child throwing a tantrum. There was the clash of metal and the rumble of thunder.

Because he would find her. He haunted her in his mind more than he was actually tangible. And she preferred the real him than the ghostly phantom.

Forming hand seals, she muttered the usual Beast Mimicry, as her animalistic side took over. Her eyes darkened, claws replacing broken fingernails, as the tattoos against her cheeks lengthened with the white of her fangs.

She pulled out another kunai, freshly sharpened, as she charged headfirst, the pump of adrenaline and chakra in her system.

He blocked her attack, her feral eyes glaring into his own impassive onyx ones. She knew of his unique eyes, the Sharingan. She knew of his torture weapon, she knew of what it could do to her. However, he never used his special ability against her, not anymore. Maybe it was to even the field, she did not have the aid of her dogs and thus was considerably weaker. Maybe it was to taunt her, that he was still impeccably strong without his most useful weapon.

Or maybe it was because he didn't want to harm her quite the way he harmed others.

She knew of it, how he too wanted to kill her as much as she felt the same with him, but could not bring himself to it. And he despised the weakness of _compassion_ the way she despised her physical weakness. She could smell the mental desire to kill her and the emotional desire to protect her boiling down deep inside him.

And physically, well, they both never quite thought of physically. The sharp screech of metal against metal filled her ears, as she swiped at his side. She missed as always, as he breathed into her ear, "Too slow."

She blocked his next attack with much accuracy, only receiving a cut across her arm rather than the gash it was intended to produce. The fabric ripped as her blood stained the black material. She hesitated, suddenly, before ducking fast enough to dodge another attack.

They fought taijutsu to taijutsu, as always. His ninjutsu could easily overpower her, and genjutsu didn't have quite an effect upon her.

She understood why he did not automatically kill her with his ninjutsu, why he did not relieve his mental toll and finally destroy the only part left of his past.

He was training her; he was making her stronger, so then, she would be a strong enough opponent not to hold back upon. And then, if she was still alive, he would take her away, he would lead her away from the life she had made to blind her in his own. He needed her hate, hate stronger than his brother's, hate to finally defeat him or for him to finally take.

He was always a selfish creature; he desired the happiness of others to satisfy his own. He was like a wounded animal, wanting everything for himself and having nothing but himself and she was life, the very foundation of his entity.

* * *

But they both knew that day would never come, that she was already succumbing to his scent, that she was already falling and gradually weakening to his very being. And she knew that she had to end this little game of tag, she needed either to triumph or to die. 

The knife was at her neck, protruding a slit of blood as it bled together with his own crimson. She panted heavily, his cool fingers wrapped around her wrist. Her fingers gripped the knife tighter in her caught hand, her nails cutting into skin and the trickle of blood from her clawed palms.

"You hesitated. Why is that?" he muttered, his breathing smooth and unlabored. Cold fingers unraveled her own, as it lifted the blade away from her fingers, touching the warm crimson liquid against his pale skin.

"Go die, you bastard."

"You don't seem to want to kill me anymore. What a shame," he whispered, moving away from her and placing the dripping blades on the desk beside them.

Her blood boiled at his comment, as she whirled around, her fingers clenched in a fist as she aimed for his head.

He caught it, his hand pushing against hers and causing her to reel her arm back. The taller man frowned, leaning in towards her panting form.

"Hana."

The whisper of her name caused her heart to pump faster, as she pulled away from his touch, sitting on the bed and healing her wounds. Glowing fingers traced cuts, scratches adorning her body to leave her skin smooth, the way it was before the battle. No one expected a thing, from either ends.

She looked up, an eyebrow cocked.

"Well?"

He crossed towards her, as she grabbed his hand and traced the wound. It was deeper this time, she realized as she traced the scar, sealing it. She pulled him down to sit on the bed beside her, as her fingers ghosted over the scar.

"You gripped it too hard, cocky bastard," she commented. "Never expected it to be that sharp."

He was silent, before replying quietly, "Don't flatter yourself."

She rolled her eyes, checking his other hand. And the feel of his callused fingers against her glowing fingers caused goosebumps to travel up her arm. She was drowning in his scent, in his body, in everything. She was healing the man her village despised, she was healing the man that ruined her life. Hana was letting the man live once more by this traitorous act. Bile formed in her throat. How could she betray her village? How could she betray the people she loved, how could she hide away her feelings from everyone, even her dogs?

"Go, now," she whispered, releasing his hand and moving away. She should have told the Hokage about these secret meetings, about the way he came whether she liked it or not. She should have told the Hokage that he was slowly killing her.

She could not bring herself to it, by daylight she was still the village veterinarian, healing the wounded animals, and living alone, a seemingly happy fiancée to an ANBU at twenty three. By night, she was haunted by the phantom.

* * *

His fingers wrapped around her wrist, pulling her down towards him. She was back in her seat beside him on the bed, leaning against her pillow. His face was veiled with its usual impassiveness, as hers was angry and tense. 

He leaned in, brushing his lips against hers as she stiffened. His lips were cold; it always was, as it pressed against her warm ones. His brush melted into a kiss as it heated her body. She let out a soft moan, trying to collect her scrambled senses, forcefully turning her head away from his, only to supply him with her neck.

Teeth on the ribbon, he pulled off the fabric off, buying her some time.

She squirmed beneath him, her emotions raging as she tried to dodge him.

"Itachi..." she breathed his name the first time in a while, before her lips were silenced by his. He seemed to need her more tonight, his fingers ghosting over any and all exposed skin.

He seemed so surreal, intangible. The Uchiha Itachi, the S-ranked missing nin that murdered his family and hated nothing and everything about the town he grew up in was in her arms, kissing _her_, a loyal Tokubetsu Jonin and vet. It seemed so fake and mystical, a phantom of the night.

But he was a phantom in some sense, haunting her mind, not physically there but behind her eyes, that every night their crimson blood flooded her, drowning her.

* * *

She knew that she would be found out. She knew that they would catch him, that it would soon end. She knew that he was the only stain on her perfect life, and he relished in the fact that she needed him quite as much as he needed her. Of course, he would never admit such weakness, and neither would she. Her back arched as his lips trailed down her jaw. 

He stopped suddenly, much to her relief and disappointment. He was still, breathing in her scent.

"Leave here," he whispered, lifting himself from her to stand. He pulled on his cloak, wrapping himself in the black and red fabric.

She stared at him, slowly, dimly, realizing his words.

"L-Leave Konoha?" she asked quietly.

He gazed at her, not responding. She lowered her eyes, sighing. Her heart was bursting, tearing.

"I..."

"Then don't. Next time, I will kill you," he turned, unable to look at her. They both knew that next time, by next time she would be married, that next time he would come and he would be caught by the ANBU. There wouldn't be a next time, and if there was, he would not kill her. He could not kill her.

She smiled knowingly at his empty threat, a sad smile. Lifting herself from her seat, she crossed over to where he stood. He stiffened at the proximity. She smiled once more, closing her eyes. She could smell him turn.

She understood why she allowed him to do this to her. She sighed, Itachi had made the decision they both had put off since the first time they met after the Uchiha massacre. Itachi had decided to end these games, and she knew she had to make a decision.

"Ne, show me why I should leave."

And she did not see the small curve of his lips, but she could feel it, as he leaned down towards her and kissed her again, one arm wrapping around her waist.

He was an angel, a fallen angel that seeks happiness in the pain of others. He was a fallen angel that wants to blind her in the darkness. He wanted to lure her into his darkness, he wanted to make her live in his own darkened destiny. He wanted to steal the priceless treasure that he could not touch; he wanted to take Hana away when her once broken life was finally mended so she could live once more in contentment. He wanted to seize every smile she gave him, every time those lips met his, every chance to stroke the heart that melted his. He selfishly wanted to protect her like a valuable gem; he greedily kept her shine hidden from the world, absorbing it all for himself. He craved only for her, and desperately wanted her for himself, thus he wanted to kidnap her away to form a new life behind the bars of his set in stone destiny as an enemy of Konoha.

And she has finally given in. She had walked through the bars, her head held high, without a word on her lips, faithfully cradling him in hers at times he despised human contact and hated life. Tenderly, she soothed his loneliness with soft words and gentle kisses.

**OWARI

* * *

**

**A/N: **This is the end of Crimson Ribbons. Thank you for reading all the way to now, waiting when I have been taking long breaks. I love you all for reviewing... and oh noez, I can't play the name game. sowwy. T.T  
Now, here's a preview of a short story I'm gonna start! It's an AU, but hey, it's hard to stay in the Naruto world with this crack!pairing.

**She has always been steady, just like him. She has always been a good dealer, and he has always been a good murderer.**


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